


How To High School: A Guide By Oh Sehun

by Syenya



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Fluff, Friendship, Humor, M/M, Polyamory, Romance, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-08-02
Packaged: 2018-11-20 04:52:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 89,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11328993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Syenya/pseuds/Syenya
Summary: Honestly, Sehun has no idea what the hell he's doing with his life, or his emotions, especially in this school full of Very Cute Boys and Extremely Unhelpful Friends. But with any luck, he might manage to get through high school without making too much of an idiot of himself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> _“You just got invited to sit with_ Kris Wu _,” Tao breathed in awe._
> 
>  
> 
> _Chanyeol nodded seriously. “If you don’t go, we’re disowning you.”_
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

 

One year, Sehun thought as he backed away from their not-quite laughter. One whole year. There was no way it could last — of course they would find out. He racked his brains for the appropriate memory. Was it that time that he pulled out the cute panda stationary that Tao had bought him and they all laughed? Or when they had caught him giving Kyungsoo that plate of cookies that he’d managed to bake by himself? Or when they saw him spying on Jongin dancing in the school studio… or the mostly-naked TVXQ posters in his locker… and maybe a bit of Chanyeol and Tao and himself hanging all over each other basically always…

Sehun sighed. It was probably a combination of all of those. He was brought violently to his senses as his head crashed against the locker that he had slowly been backing into.

In a moment of panic, he realized that he had been completely spaced out and missed all of the taunts and threats they had been throwing at him, had no idea what they had in store for him and how determinedly he should be struggling — or if it would be better to stay still so that it was all over soon. But, as usual, his daydreaming made him hesitate too long and they were grabbing his hair and limbs and pinning him fast against the lockers. He tried to wrench himself free but there were too many of them, and there were about six hands fisted in his hair, and he couldn’t move his head at all, just clenching his eyes shut as the marker drew close.

 

*

 

**FAG** , his right cheek displayed proudly; **GOT** , advertised the left. Salty tears stung the skin of his face, rubbed red and raw, and he kept scrubbing furiously, but the permanent ink stubbornly refused to even fade. He paused to take a breath, washed the suds off his face and stared desolately at his reflection. It was ten minutes into his class, but he couldn’t go in like this. And there was no way he could cover it up that abided to uniform rules. He sank to the floor and hid his face in his knees, wondering if he could just stick it out in the bathroom until school ended and he could go home. 

He sat there for a long time, the cold of the tiles slowly seeping through his pants, with the constant drip of one of the broken taps drilling into his mind, and the occasional footsteps of someone walking past. He nearly jumped out of his skin when the door opened and someone came in, hurriedly burying his face deeper into his knees.

“Hey… are you alright?”

Sehun stiffened, ignoring the voice as though it could have been addressing someone else.

The newcomer crouched down beside him and touched his shoulder. “Hey,” he repeated. “What’s wrong?”

Sehun just shook his head and didn’t look up, shying away from the touch. The other boy sighed. “Hold on, I need to pee.” Sehun heard him relieve himself a short way away, wash his hands, then return to crouching by his side. He laid a hand on his shoulder again, his fingers cold and slightly damp. Sehun shivered.

“I’m Luhan,” the boy said gently.

Sehun lifted one hand and waved shyly. Luhan laughed quietly. “What’s your name?”

“Thehun,” Sehun mumbled into his legs after a pause.

“Taewoon?” Luhan asked.

Sehun shook his head, mentally cursing his lisp. Luhan waited, clearing his throat quietly when Sehun didn’t say anything. “Sorry… I didn’t quite hear it.”

Sehun shrugged and Luhan tightened his grip on his shoulder. “Hey, come on. Don’t worry, it’s okay. What happened?” Sehun felt a finger run over his cheekbone, just below his eye. Luhan traced the cross of the “T”. “Is this the matter?”

Sehun violently shrugged him off, lifting his arm slightly to cover all the ink.

“I won’t laugh,” Luhan said, so gently and quietly that Sehun wanted to run away and go home so that someone so nice would never have a chance to reject him.

“Come on.” Luhan placed a hand on the back of his head and gently turned it to face him, and Sehun, lost again in his daydreaming, let him 

“Oh,” Luhan said, almost just an exhalation. Sehun blinked, unable to focus on his face under the fluorescent lights since his eyes had been closed for so long. "I see. Permanent?” 

Sehun nodded once, cheeks burning in shame. Luhan stood up abruptly and patted Sehun’s back. “Come with me. Maybe my friend can help you.”

“H-huh?”

“Stand up!” Luhan grabbed his elbow and helped him to his feet, straightening out his jacket for him. Sehun stared. He wasn’t sure he had seen the other boy before, so he inspected his face. His eyes were kind of strange in a way Sehun couldn’t quite explain, and he had a small, pointy nose. He was also blond, which made Sehun smile. It was within school rules to have coloured hair — provided it was only one shade and of a reasonably natural colour; no rainbows or wacky colours like white or green; but still, it pissed off the disciplinarians no end. He could have been a first-year, which would account for Sehun never having seen him before. It was only the second week of school, after all.

“Let’s go~” Luhan sang, taking Sehun’s elbow and almost skipping from the bathroom. Sehun let out a noise of protest but stumbled along, covering his face with his hands. Luhan kept a hold of his elbow as he led him down the corridors, and Sehun peeked through his fingers to see where they were going. There were not many people around, so Sehun guessed it was still class time.

“Th… shouldn’t you be getting back to class?” he asked the shorter boy hanging off his arm.

“Free period,” Luhan explained breezily.

Sehun sighed, pressing his hands harder against his face as Luhan dragged him into the library, where there were many more people than the basically empty corridors. Luhan pulled him to the very back of the room, patting him on the back and starting to talk in rapid Chinese.

Sehun peeked through his fingers again and stared at the senior Luhan was talking to, who he had definitely seen before. They called him Kris, the foreign student, resident ladykiller. Seducing them all without even trying, never dating. He stared back at Sehun while responding to Luhan, and Sehun felt himself grow incredibly hot, panic tugging at the edges of his mind because it was stressful enough just being here without also being unable to understand what either of them were saying.

Luhan tugged at his wrists and Sehun shook his head frantically, backing away and pressing his hands harder against his face.

“ _Show him, don’t worry, we don’t bite._ ” Luhan’s eyebrows lowered at Sehun’s blank expression and then grinned sheepishly. “Sorry.” He reverted back to Korean. “Open up and let him see.”

“Why?” Sehun took a couple more steps back.

“Please? Trust me.” Luhan smiled encouragingly and Sehun reluctantly let him pry his hands from his vandalized cheeks.

Kris sighed and leaned back in his chair. “What do you want me to do, Luhan?” he asked in perfect Korean, “It’s not like I keep makeup at _school_.”

Luhan’s face fell. “Nothing? Not even a wet wipe?”

Kris shook his head. “Wipes wouldn’t do anything for that anyway,” he gestured lazily at Sehun, who lowered his head in embarrassment.

Luhan rubbed his arm comfortingly, then his face lit up again. “Anyway, now that you don’t have your mouth in your knees, want to tell me your name again?”

Sehun blushed even deeper, concentrating on not letting his lisp through. “Oh Sehun.”

“Sehun?”

“Sehun.”

Luhan suddenly clapped and laughed, catching Sehun off guard. “ _Ah, he has a lisp! Isn’t that adorable_ ,” he said to Kris in Mandarin, and Kris cracked a small smile. Luhan turned serious again. “Well, what to do?” He inspected Sehun’s face. “What’s the time, Yifan?”

Kris looked at his watch. “Quarter to four.”

Luhan tapped his lip. “So, not enough time to go and come back before last period…” he suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Sehun’s forearm. “Sehun.”

“Y-yes?”

“Are you one of those kids who is extremely, violently and determinedly opposed to playing truant?”

“U-um… well…”

“If you have to hesitate, then obviously not!” Luhan beamed. “Come on, guys.”

“Why do I have to go?” Kris asked.

“Because we’re using your house, so I assumed you’d want to be present,” Luhan informed him.

“Aiyah.” Kris pushed himself to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder. “Fine. Let’s go.”

“What?” Sehun squeaked. He was going to _Kris Wu’s_ house?

Luhan gave him a look that told Sehun the blond knew exactly what he was thinking.

Sehun sighed and pressed his hands to his face again, letting Luhan lead him out of the library; and a fair walk later, he found himself in the second storey of Kris’ enormous house, sitting on the edge of his expansive bathtub, while Luhan drowned his face in makeup remover.

 

*

 

Luhan was a senior.

“You’re _older_ than me?” Sehun nearly fell off his chair.

“Thut up,” Luhan pouted, mocking the younger student’s lisp, and Sehun blushed.

 

*

 

“Sehun!” Luhan called as he passed by where Sehun was just opening his lunch box on the oval with Tao and Chanyeol. “Want to come sit with us?" 

“U-uh…” Sehun glanced at his friends and started as he saw them staring at Luhan with their mouths open. Chanyeol’s was full of food and Sehun gently pushed his chin up to close it. “Maybe another day, I’m— ouch!” he stared at Chanyeol, who had punched him in the arm. “What?”

“You just got invited to sit with _Kris Wu_ ,” Tao breathed in awe.

Chanyeol nodded seriously. “If you don’t go, we’re disowning you.”

“You don’t own me in the first place,” Sehun pointed out. “And besides, I’ve already been to his house.”

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “Just go, or Tao will go all Kung Fu Panda on your ass,” he said, attempting to mimic Tao’s moves and falling over backwards. “Wait a minute.” He sat back up. “Did you just say that you’ve been to his _house_?"

“Hurry up! He’s waiting!” Tao urged, pushing Sehun to his feet and in Luhan’s direction. “Tell us everything! _Everything_!”

“Were you not listening, Tao?” Chanyeol screeched as Sehun walked away from them, “He just—! He just said—!”

Tao rolled his eyes and patted Chanyeol’s curly head. “He was lying, Yeol.”

Sehun chuckled to himself and bowed shyly at Luhan. “Hi.”

Luhan frowned. “You don’t need to bow at me, Sehun,” he ordered crisply as they approached the patch of grass where his friends were waiting. “Bowing makes me uncomfortable… it’s so formal. And it makes me feel old.”

One of the others snorted. “Please, Luhan. You? Feel old? You’re still in high school. And if you’re old, what does that make me?”

“No-one asked you, Baozi,” Luhan shoved the back of his head. “Sehun, this is our resident baozi, you met Kris, and that’s our resident rainbow-pooping sparkly unicorn."

“Um,” Sehun bowed awkwardly. The two guys that Luhan had pointed at rolled their eyes.

“I’m Kim Minseok,” the first said, holding out a hand that Sehun shook as Luhan fell down in the grass beside him. “And a baozi is a type of steamed dumpling. It’s a side effect of hanging out with Chinese guys: they name you after food.”

Sehun grinned shyly. “Yeah. Tao likes to call me—”

“Ttat ttat ttat ttat ttat!” Minseok cut him off with a warning expression. “Be careful! If you say it out loud, this kid will never call you anything else.” He pushed Luhan’s head playfully.

Sehun smiled a bit wider and kept quiet.

“I’ll find a nickname for you either way. Doesn’t he look like a dumpling, though?” Luhan grabbed Minseok’s face and pulled at his cheeks. It looked painful and Minseok swatted at Luhan to get him off.

“I’m Zhang Yixing,” the other senior introduced himself with a heavy accent, opting to wave instead of stand up from his seated position and shake Sehun’s hand. “And… just ignore the unicorn thing.”

“Sit down!” Luhan waved his hand at Sehun, who lowered himself to the ground cautiously.

Minseok smiled at him. “Relax! We don’t bite.”

“Unless you’re into that sort of thing.” Luhan wiggled his eyebrows and Minseok flicked his forehead.

“Inappropriate, Lulu.”

“Seriously, though.” Luhan grabbed his knee and shook his leg. “Calm down.”

“I’m calm,” Sehun said, wrapping seaweed around his rice and sticking it in his mouth.

Luhan cupped a hand around his mouth. “We’re all queer too,” he stage whispered, “But shh!”

Sehun paused, chopsticks hanging out of his mouth. “Just because I had ‘faggot’ scrawled across my face doesn’t mean I’m gay, you know,” he mumbled.

Luhan blinked. “Of course not, but you are,” he reasoned.

Sehun blushed and looked down. “How did you know?”

Luhan just laughed.

“Do you get bullied a lot?” Minseok asked quietly while Luhan started chattering loud Chinese things at Yixing with his mouth full of food.

Sehun shook his head silently.

Minseok raised an eyebrow. “Okay. We all were at some point or another too, you know. Give us a shout if you ever need anything. We’ll help you out.”

Sehun smiled gratefully. “Thanks.”

“You like Chinese food?” Luhan pushed a container full of meat at Sehun that was very suspiciously bright red.

“ _Luhan, that’s my lunch_!” Yixing complained in Mandarin, and Luhan smiled at him sweetly while Sehun frowned in confusion.

“ _You don’t mind giving some to Sehun, though, do you_?” he replied, before reverting to Korean and directing his words at Sehun. “Try it.”

“What is it?”

“Pork.” Luhan grabbed a piece with his chopsticks and managed to daintily push the whole thing into his mouth. “Yixing makes the _best_ char shao.”

“You made this?” Sehun asked as he took a piece for himself.

Yixing nodded, narrowing his eyes at Luhan. “ _Now give me back my lunch._ ”

Luhan smiled innocently and pushed the container back at Yixing. “Thanks, mama unicorn.”

Yixing sighed.

 

*

 

“You’re very friendly with the seniors lately,” Chanyeol said, hands on his hips as he loomed over Sehun at his locker. “Should we be getting jealous?”

“Yes.” Sehun took out his lunch box and shut his locker again. “You should be very jealous. They don’t call me names,” _yet_ , “They don’t tackle me in the corridors, steal my homework, copy off me, invite themselves to my house and crash in my kitchen, get me in trouble, oh — and they also give me lots of really good Chinese food.” He stared pointedly at Tao, who couldn’t wait until they got outside and had already started eating.

“What?” he said, cheeks stuffed full of rice and meat. “I need to eat to keep up my strength for all my wushu badassery. I don’t have any food left over for you guys to scoff.”

“See what I mean?” Sehun turned back to Chanyeol, who had folded his arms and was rolling his eyes.

“Not to mention that they’re ridiculously attractive and you have the biggest thing for Kris Wu.”

“Please.” Sehun scoffed as the three of them started heading towards the oval. “The ‘thing’ you two have for Yifan is about twenty times the magnitude of mine.”

“Who’s Yifan?”

Sehun stopped in his tracks. “Um… Kris.”

Tao gasped. “He lets you call him by his real name?” he whispered, using the hand that wasn’t holding his lunch to grab Sehun’s arm painfully.

“Case in point,” Sehun jabbed a finger in Tao’s direction.

“Not me,” Chanyeol shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. “I’m straight.”

“Sure you are.” Sehun rolled his eyes. “You just choke, trip over your own feet and walk into things whenever he passes by you for no reason."

“He does that stuff normally, Sehun,” Tao argued, both of them thoroughly failing to notice Chanyeol’s cries of indignation.

“No.” Sehun shook his head. “Normally, he chokes, trips over his own feet _or_ walks into things. When Yifan’s around he manages to do all of that and sometimes more.”

“Anyway, while you’ve been off fraternizing with those guys, you’ve been missing some choice news,” Chanyeol changed the subject while Tao snorted gracelessly.

“You mean gossip.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“It doesn’t matter. Check this out.” Chanyeol grabbed both of Sehun’s shoulders and aimed him at the wall of lockers.

“What am I checking out?”

“That guy.”

“Who is he?” Sehun asked blankly.

“Transfer student called Baekhyun, but just _look_.”

Sehun looked and blinked twice. The boy, tiny and petite like he could break at any moment, was wearing pants that were a size too small so they clung to his butt and thighs, had stuck a small mirror to the door of his locker and was fixing his hair in it, and—

“Is he wearing eyeliner?”

Chanyeol nodded vigorously. The boy closed his locker and slung his bag over one shoulder, walking off upright and confident.

“What is he, some kind of idol?” Sehun wondered aloud before glancing over at Chanyeol’s face and snorting loudly. He patted his friend on the back, nearly knocking him over — not because it was a particularly strong pat, but because Chanyeol was just that lacking in balance and co-ordination.

“Yeah. _You’re_ straight.”

“I… I am!” Chanyeol’s eyes went wide as Sehun took Tao’s arm and walked ahead of him. “I wasn’t— Hey! Sehun!”

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Kyungsoo, stop shipping me with everyone.”_
> 
> _“Never.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

 

“Hey.”

Sehun turned around and jumped in surprise at the sight of the new kid, Baekhyun, leaning against the locker beside his with his arms loosely folded and one foot pressed against the lowest level of metal doors.

“Um… hi?”

The other boy smiled, made-up eyes crinkling. “I’m Byun Baekhyun, I’m in your math class. Second year, transfer student. Nice to meet you.”

“Um, you too.” Sehun took the slender hand Baekhyun held out for him to shake. “I’m Oh Sehun.”

Baekhyun’s eyes slid past Sehun’s face to his locker and he raised one eyebrow. “You like TVXQ?”

“Um.” Sehun tried to close his locker but Baekhyun pushed his hand in the way and kept it open.

“Don’t worry, me too. I particularly—”

“Well, well, look who it is,” a voice behind them drawled and all the blood drained from Sehun’s face. Baekhyun looked over with raised eyebrows as a group of Sehun’s tormentors surrounded the two of them.

The leader of them raked his gaze up and down Baekhyun’s body and he smirked. “You’re a faggot too, huh?”

“Naturally.” Baekhyun slid his hands behind his head and Sehun stared.

Their year-mate was only put off for a second. “You’ve been here what, four days? Showing off the wares already, huh, slut?”

Baekhyun grinned. “Why? Jealous I’m getting cock and not you?”

Sehun let out a strange noise, trying to warn Baekhyun with his eyes to stop. Baekhyun wasn’t looking at him, though, and was still smiling in a seemingly-oblivious fashion at the highly intimidating students surrounding them.

It was obvious that they had no idea how to deal with Baekhyun’s last comment, used to their prey going white and stammering out denials.

“Bet you love cock though, don’t you, slut." 

Baekhyun shrugged.

“Better watch out, dude, before he hops on you,” one of the younger boys laughed, and some of the others laughed as well.

Baekhyun raised his hands above his head and stretched. “As if I would lower my standards to your tiny dicks,” he scoffed and flicked a spot of dirt from his perfectly manicured nails before peering at the leader. “I don’t like your face,” he commented mildly.

“What did you just say, dumbfuck?”

Baekhyun raised his hands in a frame. “I don’t know… there’s just something about it… it’s just… eugh,” he bared his left molars in distaste.

The leader’s eyes went dark and dangerous. “You’d better watch your fucking mouth.”

“Or what?”

Sehun quickly stepped in front of him. “He didn’t mean that,” he said hurriedly. “We’re really, really sorry.”

“No, I’m not.” Baekhyun ducked out from under Sehun’s extended arms and swapped their positions. “Move aside, Sehun. Or _what_?”

The larger, stockier boy punched him so hard in the face he was sent crashing against the lockers, making the whole row rattle. Sehun let out a small squeak as Baekhyun slumped, clutching his face, then straightened with a wry chuckle. “If that swells up, I might have to hurt you,” he warned, then grunted as the leader caught him another punch to the stomach.

“Hey, hey!” the head boy came running up with one of the teachers. “That’s enough, stop that!”

The head boy, Joonmyun, turned to Baekhyun and Sehun while the teacher marched the perpetrators away. “Are you alright? What happened? Did you provoke them?”

Baekhyun shook his head, lip trembling as he looked up at the senior with wide eyes. “No, not at all. I was… I was just talking to Sehun here, trying to make a friend since I’m new, and they just… they just…”

“Ah… okay, it’s okay.” Joonmyun patted Baekhyun’s back encouragingly and turned to Sehun. “Sehun… um…” he frowned at Sehun, who was still standing dead still in shock with his mouth slightly open. “Okay then… ah, Baekhyun. If I can say so, it’s probably because… well… kids like them tend to go after kids who… well, who dress like you do.”

“The way I dress…?” Baekhyun repeated softly, then hung his head. “Yes. I understand.”

“Well… I suppose you two should be getting to class,” Joonmyun told them. “Are you really fine? It looks like you’re going to bruise…”

Baekhyun nodded. I'm fine, thanks. Sehun… we have English together, yeah? Shall we go?” he looped his arm through Sehun’s and dragged him away, Sehun stumbling after him, still dazed.

Baekhyun laughed at his expression as soon as they’d rounded the corner and were away from Joonmyun. “The trick, Sehun, is to pick a fight at the right time, and then take the defensive,” he smiled. “That way, you get your attackers dealt with, and get on the teachers’ good side!” he beamed. “Sehun? You alright?”

Sehun seemed to snap out of it. “Are _you_ alright?” he asked, quickly spinning Baekhyun around and inspecting his cheek where he had been punched. Joonmyun was right — he was definitely going to bruise there. 

Baekhyun waved a hand breezily. “I’m fine. Just a bit of concealer, no-one will be able to tell.”

“But… that’s not what I… doesn’t it hurt?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “Ah, whatever.”

Sehun stared at him. Baekhyun slid his fingers into Sehun’s hand and tugged him towards the English room, and Sehun’s heart did something strange.

He let Baekhyun hold his hand all the way to the door.

 

*

 

“Where’s Chanyeol?” Sehun asked, from Kyungsoo’s couch, while the older boy made something decidedly perfect-smelling in the adjoining kitchen. 

Kyungsoo laughed. “Where do you think? He’s off practicing his “perfectly-straight-and-yet-determined-to-follow-Baekhyun-around-like-a-lost-puppy routine.”

“Ah.” Sehun nodded sagely. “I see.”

Kyungsoo smiled and popped a couple of banana chips from the glass dish on the bench into his mouth. “He’s a cute kid. I like him.”

Sehun sighed. “He’s going to get himself beat up, though.”

Kyungsoo shook his head. “No he’s not. Not with Chanyeol shadowing his every footstep. He’s pretty smart, too. He’ll be fine.”

“Hm.” Sehun munched on some potato chips, eyes lazily following the animated movements of Disney cartoons on the muted TV.

Kyungsoo put the last tray in the oven and waved his hands at Sehun in a ‘shoo’-ing motion, telling him to sit up and stop hogging the entire couch. Sehun sat up long enough for Kyungsoo to sit, then dropped back into his friend’s lap.

Kyungsoo yelped, then sighed, resting his hand in Sehun’s hair instead. “So, Sehun.”

“Hm?” Sehun offered the bowl of chips to Kyungsoo, who took one of the big ones that Sehun had been saving for last. Sehun pouted, but Kyungsoo was too busy munching on the snack to see.

“So,” he repeated when he’d swallowed. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with those Chinese seniors lately.”

“Hm.”

“Care to tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“I don’t know. Anything.”

“What sort of anything?”

“Sehun,” Kyungsoo whined. “You’re not being very co-operative here.”

“What should I say?”

“Tell me about them! You’re not a very social butterfly, Sehun. What made you become friends with them?”

“Um… well, Luhan and Yifan kind of helped me out of an um, thing, with those guys…” he trailed off, but Kyungsoo understood him and waved at him to continue. “And then they invited me to eat lunch with them and Chanyeol and Tao made me go.”

Kyungsoo snorted. “Uh-huh… so none of it was your own initiative at all, right. Got it.” He smiled. “Luhan’s nice, huh?”

“Hm,” Sehun hummed in surprise.

“What?”

“Well, it’s just that everyone else teases me about Yifan.”

“It’s because you call him Yifan, you know.” Kyungsoo brushed Sehun’s bangs aside. “Besides, _I_ know you’d never do that to Tao.”

“True.” Sehun pushed the bowl of chips onto the coffee table. “Are those cookies done yet?”

Kyungsoo leaned back. “Nope.”

“Anyway.” Sehun returned to their previous topic of conversation. “I don’t like Luhan that way. He’s just a friend.”

“Really?” Kyungsoo sounded disappointed by his sincerity.

“Of course.” 

“Oh.”

“Kyungsoo, stop shipping me with everyone.”

 “Never.”

 Sehun chuckled and rolled over, nuzzling into Kyungsoo’s stomach. “You smell like cookies.”

 Kyungsoo laughed. “Fail-safe seduction technique. Cookies, and the willingness to buy bubble tea for everyone.”

 “Yes. You’re a great friend, Kyungsoo. Well done. Friend of the year award goes to you.”

 “Sehun.”

 “Yes?”

 “Flattering me won’t make the cookies bake faster.”

 

*

 

“Oomph!” Sehun grunted as the guy he had been inadvertently following out of the classroom suddenly stopped in his tracks, causing Sehun to crash into his back. “Sorry,” he mumbled without looking up, rubbing his nose.

 “Oh… hi.”

 Sehun looked up and he swore his heart stopped for a moment as he found himself inches away from the face of Kim Jongin, resident second-year heartthrob and Sehun’s own ultimate crush. Not that he would tell anybody. Especially not Chanyeol, Kyungsoo or Tao. He just liked to look from behind — in class, down the halls, on the bus and subway…

 “Sorry what?” he blurted out.

 Jongin smiled — _smiled_ — and Sehun almost died right there. “I said hi.”

 “Oh.” Sehun said faintly. “Um… hi.”

 “You’re Kyungsoo’s friend, right? Oh Sehun?”

 “You know me?” Sehun’s voice cracked up a couple of octaves.

 “Sure I do. You spend like all your time with Kyungsoo, right? And you come down to the dance studio sometimes.” He patted Sehun’s shoulder and the light touch almost made Sehun fall over into the corridor (he’d been spending far too much time around Chanyeol. Apparently, balance deficiency was contagious). “Relax,” Jongin said along with the pat, “I’m not gonna eat you.”

Sehun nodded quickly. “Um. Yeah. Hahaha.” He quickly ducked his head and brought his satchel around to the front of his body so he had something to hold. He was the very definition of eloquence. This would be a piece of cake. He was going to seduce Jongin utterly with his charm and grace.

Sehun forced his brain to shut the fuck up.

“You have the same class as me next too, right? Shall we go together?” Jongin offered, pushing his hands into his pockets. Sehun was nodding before he even realized he was, and Jongin laughed. “Come on, then.”

Sehun scrambled to follow, walking slightly behind and to the side of Jongin. He stared at Jongin’s back as he walked, admiring his figure, and his hair, and the way his uniform just seemed to work on his frame, and his jaw, and—

“Kai!”

Jongin stopped and turned at the sound of his nickname. “Yo, wassup?”

Sehun shrank back behind his unexpected new friend, only too familiar with that voice. It brought back memories, the smell of permanent marker and being shoved into lockers.

“We’re going for a smoke, coming?”

Sehun lowered his eyes. It was bad enough _knowing_ that Jongin was like that, but hearing it was even worse. He sighed quietly, glad at least that he would be able to walk alone with the knowledge that his bullies weren’t waiting to ambush him anywhere.

“Nah,” Jongin said, and Sehun’s head snapped up hopefully. “I’ll go to class today.”

“Boo, faggot.” The way he said it to Jongin wasn’t the same way that he said it to Sehun or any of Sehun’s friends, and Jongin just laughed. “Hey,” he continued, frowning slightly, and Sehun wanted to disappear. “What’s with your shadow?”

Jongin glanced over his shoulder at Sehun. “Friend of a friend. We share a couple classes.”

Sehun’s bully scoffed. “What kind of friends do you have, Kai?” he shook his head. “Whatever. Careful he doesn’t rape you or anything.” He shrugged and turned around, a cigarette already in his fingers as he walked away with his other friends.

Jongin turned to where Sehun was standing, head lowered and knuckles white on the strap of his bag. “Class?” he suggested as though nothing had happened, starting to walk off in their original direction.

“Y-yeah,” Sehun quickly hopped to, trailing after him like—

_Like Chanyeol with Baekhyun. Shit_.

He really hoped he didn’t run into Kyungsoo or Tao.

 

*

 

Sehun was startled out of his mid-class boredom when a note in the shape of a tiny paper plane landed on the desk right on the wood-knot he was inspecting with abnormal intrigue. He frowned as he unfolded it and read the message inside.

 

_Know what the day after tomorrow is?_

 

Sehun looked up at Jongin’s desk, diagonally in front of him to the right. Jongin grinned over his shoulder and Sehun scrawled a reply on the note.

 

_Saturday?_

 

Jongin frowned at him as he read his reply.

 

_Yes, but that’s not what I meant_.

 

Sehun looked up from the plane in confusion. “What?” he mouthed.

 

Jongin bugged his eyes at him and furiously scribbled on another piece of paper, screwing it up to give it some weight before throwing it over to him.

 

_It’s mid-term break, retard! You’re not excited????_

 

Sehun nodded slowly in comprehension then looked up at Jongin and shrugged. Jongin’s mouth fell open. Sehun quickly ducked his head to scribble a reply and explain himself.

 

_Usually Kyungsoo and I just study over break, so it’s not a big deal. Last year we did some holiday programs at the school too, so it really didn’t make a difference…_

 

Jongin huffed out the corner of his mouth as he read the message, making his bangs flutter.

 

_Nerd._

_Anyway, since we don’t HAVE to start our homework for like two weeks, wanna grab Kyungsoo and that other nutcase you hang out with and head to the CBD after school?_

 

Sehun paused, heart thumping.

 

_Who else would be there?_ He wrote back eventually. Jongin stared at him for a while, eyes unreadable. Sehun shifted uncomfortably. Jongin flicked his finger from his watch to the door, then placed it on the corner of his mouth. _I’ll talk to you after class._ Sehun nodded and turned back to studying his desk, heart still nervously fluttering.

 

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Yo.” Jongin pushed away from the column and smiled, stretching his arms over his head as he started to walk off. Sehun followed, picking up the pace when Jongin called at him to hurry up._
> 
> _“I don’t want to be in pants any longer than necessary,” he said, and Sehun stopped dead._
> 
> _Jongin turned around after a few metres, when he realized Sehun was no longer trying to follow. “You right?”_
> 
> _“_ What _did you say?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

 

“Um,” Sehun began, standing next to Jongin’s desk with his books in his arms as the other boy slowly packed his bags. It was the usual conversation starter he used for Jongin. It mostly seemed to work.

Jongin looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. “Yo.”

Sehun shuffled while Jongin shoved his pencil case into his satchel and slung it over his shoulder, brushing past Sehun as he walked from the classroom. Sehun scurried after him, seeing the faint smirk on Jongin’s lips, but disregarding it as his default expression.

“Uh,” he tried again, trotting to stand by Jongin’s side. Jongin smiled at him and slung an arm across his shoulders, and Sehun almost fell over his own feet. He took a couple of deep (subtle) breaths and focused on placing his feet one in front of the other until he calmed down again.

“What’s up, Sehun?” Jongin gripped Sehun’s arm casually and gave him a gentle shake.

“I, um,” Sehun paused and made Jongin halt in his tracks as the older student headed for the exit. “Locker?”

“Oh, right.” Jongin swung them around and started walking in the direction of Sehun’s locker. Sehun felt the weight of his arm heavily, the points of his body where he could feel Jongin’s fingers through his shirt, the shoulder of Jongin’s blazer tickling his ear as they walked. He hoped he wasn’t as red as he felt. Jongin was quiet as they walked, and Sehun’s brain, while working about ten times as fast as usual, couldn’t think of a single thing to say.

He did pull away and sigh, though, when he saw the day’s ‘gift’ stuck to the front of his locker. The caricature did look a lot like him, he had to admit, and he would have admired the artwork and the skill involved — except for the scrawled penis in the corner of the page, spurting all over his smiling face. He tore it off and screwed it up, taking his bag from his locker and shoving the ball of paper deep into its depths to throw away later.

Jongin said nothing, and Sehun was grateful.

He began taking out his books and lunchboxes and all the crap that had accumulated in his locker, pushing as much of it as he could into his bag to take home before school ended for the break.

“Isn’t that heavy?” Jongin asked, leaning against the neighbouring locker. “It’s the last day tomorrow, how come you’re taking so much stuff?”

Sehun felt the heat creep up his face again, though he hadn’t thought that was possible with how red he had already felt. “I… but…” he looked up with almost a pleading expression. “Aren’t we going to the CBD after school tomorrow?”

Jongin suddenly grinned hugely and laughed, leaving Sehun to blink and feel as though he had missed something.

“I thought you’d never bring it up,” Jongin snorted, lightly shoving Sehun’s head. “Of course we are, if you want. I haven’t asked anyone else, so it would be whoever you want to join us. I think Kyungsoo is free, though.”

“Of course I want! I mean,” Sehun sighed as he realized he wasn’t going to fit his last two books into his bag.

“Here, lemme help,” Jongin grabbed the books and shut Sehun’s locker for him, pulling him toward the door. “Hurry or we’ll miss the bus.”

“I… thank you,” Sehun mumbled, ducking his head.

Jongin scoffed and slung his arm over his shoulder again. “Of course, Sehunnie.”

“Th… Thehun _nie_?” Sehun squeaked inadvertently, lisp coming out full-force and Jongin made a strange snorting sound. “Don’t… don’t laugh,” Sehun mumbled, ducking his head but finding Jongin’s chest or Jongin’s hand whichever way he turned.

“I’m not laughing,” Jongin said, smile suspiciously wide.

“Kai!”

Sehun’s heart leapt almost out of his mouth before dropping right past his shoes into the floor.

“Hm? Oh, hey.”

“Jesus fuckin’ Christ, man, what are you doing? It’ll infect you,” Jongin’s buddy made an exaggerated show of clamping his hand over his mouth and nose.

Jongin rolled his eyes and muttered something that sounded suspiciously (encouragingly) like ‘asshole’.

Still talking through his fingers, the other boy continued. “Do you want to come with us to the mall after school tomorrow? I have it on good authority that Jessica and Tiffany are taking their friends out shopping there. We might… run into them, if you know what I mean.”

Jongin’s fingers tapped out a staccato rhythm on Sehun’s arm. “You’re a fucking creep, you know that? Leave them alone, Christ. I have to catch a bus. Come on, Sehun.”

“Sehun? Don’t you mean _Thehun_?” the guy scoffed, eyes going huge when Jongin glanced over his shoulder to glare at him. “Oh my god, he’s already infected you.”

Jongin’s fingers dug painfully into Sehun’s arm as he walked him briskly from the school.

“Do you take it up the ass, Kai?” the scornful voice rang out from behind them, “Or does he spread his legs for you?”

“Keep. Walking,” Jongin growled as he sped up his pace even more.

“ _I_ know,” Sehun muttered back, keeping up easily for once.

Jongin’s lips tightened and he said nothing, dropping his arm when they reached the doors. They joined the crowd rushing for the last buses, Sehun waving as he saw Chanyeol, Tao and Kyungsoo waiting for them.

“We thought you’d died! You missed both of the fast buses,” Chanyeol complained, waving his arms to emphasize his frustration, then falling still and managing to almost fall over at the sight of Jongin. “Um, hi? What are you doing here?”

“Am I not allowed to be here?” Jongin grinned.

Chanyeol widened his eyes. “Of course not, you’re very welcome,” he said earnestly. “You don’t usually come near our little group, though. I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced. I’m Park Chanyeol,” he continued, almost wrenching Jongin’s arm from its socket.

“Nice to meet you,” Jongin extracted himself firmly and after exchanging a calmer greeting with Tao, smiled at Kyungsoo. “Hey, Kyungsoo.”

“Hi,” Kyungsoo muttered back, looking away.

“Don’t be like that,” Jongin complained, clapping both hands to Kyungsoo’s cheeks and smushing his lips in. “Your eyes are _so_ big,” he commented, pouting when Kyungsoo forcefully freed himself and shoved Jongin away. “So, Sehunnie and I are going out tomorrow after school to celebrate the holiday, and you guys should come with us.”

Sehun winced internally as three sets of eyes shot directly to his flushed face, full of pending questions. He suspected all of the questions contained something about ‘Sehunnie’. He forced himself to swallow subtly instead of clearing his throat before he nodded “Yeah, come.”

“Are you buying food, _Sehunnie_?” Chanyeol asked _oh so casually_.

“Uh, sure,” Sehun nodded.

“Cool beans! Count me in,” Chanyeol raised a hand and almost took out Kyungsoo.

“I’ll come,” Tao nodded. “Kyungsoo?”

“Ugh… yeah, I’ll come too.” Kyungsoo shrugged.

“Bring cookies!” Chanyeol cried as he slung himself over and around Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes.

“Awesome.” Jongin beamed. “Oh look, here’s our bus.”

He patted Sehun on the shoulder before striding off confidently, leaving the others to follow.

 

 

 

Jongin sat beside Chanyeol on the bus, his natural charisma pairing up with Chanyeol’s talent for making conversation as they spoke about everything and nothing. Sehun half-listened to them from the seat behind, studiously ignoring Kyungsoo’s pointed, irritated, knowing or curious looks (there were a lot sent his way). Tao sat behind them, stuck between some girl and the window, napping on Kyungsoo’s shoulder.

Jongin didn’t usually talk to Sehun on the bus, each opting to sit with their other friends, so when they split at the interchange, Jongin and Sehun dashing down the steps to catch their subway, the eyes that followed them bore heavily into the back of Sehun’s head.

They stood pressed together on the crowded subway, unable to get a seat, and Jongin smiled. “I think when I called your friend a nutcase I underestimated,” he said.

Sehun frowned slightly. “What’s wrong with Chanyeol?”

“Nothing!” Jongin said quickly. “But you know, he’s… fucking insane.”

Sehun let out a huff of mirth when he saw that Jongin didn’t mean it to be a genuinely negative comment. “I guess so. You seemed to hit it off with him, though.”

Jongin nodded, glancing away to close the conversation. They stood in silence, listening to the hum of a train interior and the muted roar of motion. Sehun kept his eyes on Jongin, a question poised on the tip of his tongue, dancing around his mouth; he swallowed it, twice, but it returned.

“Jongin?” he blurted, and the older boy turned to face him (in the crowded space, too close). He hesitated again, struggling to spit out words that had, just seconds ago, been too keen to escape. “Why,” he tried, “Um.”

Jongin stared at him with a blank expression, but it was carefully blank, waiting for (daring) him to continue.

“I mean, it’s fine and, um, you know, but like… and earlier… it’s just a bit… not that there’s anything wrong! But—”

“Oh my god, stop already,” Jongin raised a hand to lightly punch Sehun in the arm. “I… I need new friends, okay?”

Sehun looked up, silent, interpreting Jongin’s face and the sharp, defensive tone he’d used.

“Okay,” he smiled, nodding, and Jongin looked away decisively. Sehun chuckled quietly, clapping Jongin on the shoulder once as the doors opened and he ducked out onto his station.

 

*

 

“Hey, Sehun! Where are you off to?”

Sehun suddenly found himself caught between Luhan, holding his waist, and Yixing, with an arm slung around his shoulders.

“Uh,” Sehun shied away slightly from Luhan’s wide (close) eyes. “Dance studio?”

“Oh, really?” Luhan’s bag bumped against Sehun’s leg as they walked. “Do you dance too?”

“Don't you guys have class?”

“Skipped,” Luhan said with relish. “We were going to go do some other work, but we saw you passing and decided that following you would be far more interesting. Don’t tell Minseokie and Yifan, though.”

“Why would I tell them?”

“Good boy.” Luhan pinched his cheek.

Sehun swatted him away. “Do you guys have to be so close?”

“Yes.” Luhan yanked him closer to his side, but Yixing chuckled apologetically and let go. Luhan narrowed his eyes at him. “You’re no fun, unicorn.”

But Luhan eventually let go on their trek across to the arts block on the other side of the school, and Sehun timidly peered into the dance studio where Jongin was practicing. The three of them watched from the door until Jongin finished, looked up and noticed them standing there.

“Hey! Come in,” he beckoned and turned off the music player. “Sehunnie, you brought me an audience.”

“Hi! I’m Luhan!” Luhan bounded into the room and shook Jongin’s hand. “Nice dancing, you’re pretty cool.”

Jongin grinned. “Thanks.” He picked up his water bottle and took a sip, his eyes sliding over to Sehun.

Luhan followed his gaze. “Ah, Sehun, is it your turn? Can we see you dance?”

Sehun shook his head quickly and Jongin chuckled around the plastic top of his bottle. “Sehun just watches,” he said, speaking from the experience he’d had in noticing Sehun spying on his practice. Sehun flushed as Luhan pouted.

“Oh, come on, I bet you can, you’re just shy. Please, Sehun? It’s not like we’ll laugh,” Luhan encouraged.

Sehun grimaced and Jongin joined in. “Come over here, I’ll teach you.”

The youngest of them sat down against the wall, shaking his head a final time.

“Teach me,” Yixing suggested, discarding his bag, shoes and blazer next to Sehun and walking to the center of the room.

Jongin raised his eyebrows. “Okay, sure. I’m Jongin, by the way.”

“Yixing.”

They shook hands.

“What did you want me to teach you?”

Yixing glanced at the mirror and dropped his hand down to his ankle to stretch. “That routine you were just doing, it looked fun.”

Jongin assessed Yixing’s flexibility with an expression that was almost surprised, and nodded. “Cool. So it starts like—”

“Me too!” Luhan ran forward and stood in line with Yixing, slightly behind and to the right of Jongin.

Jongin grinned and began, counting slowly, marking each of his movements with a number; two bars of eight. Then repeated, with Yixing and Luhan mimicking him perfectly. Jongin continued. Two more bars. Sixteen beats of synchronized movement.

“Hey, wow, you guys pick up stuff really fast,” Jongin commented.

“We danced in China,” Yixing said in a half-explanation, leaving Sehun to wonder just how deep their bond ran. But Jongin just smiled lopsidedly, picked up the pace, and after just minutes, they were running through the first section together. Yixing messed up once, turning on the wrong foot. Luhan messed up twice, missing a beat, bringing his arms around the wrong way. They ran the section again. All three of them were perfect.

Sehun let out an imperceptible sigh of admiration and envy, pulling his knees up into his arms.

It wasn’t like he couldn’t dance. In fact, he could, and had taken lessons all through primary school, but now he was restricted to what his mother called ‘hopping about’ in his bedroom, and watching Jongin during their free period as the other boy practiced. There was a spark of jealousy, of course, that spurred him to keep dancing in his room, but any desire to draw attention to himself had been well and truly stamped out of him by the bullies in middle school.

The ache inside him, the longing to get up and join them, to have the _ability_ to, was something new.

The second section was harder. Jongin slowed down his counting again, but the other two continued to follow him. There was a little less accuracy in their movements, but they laughed easily with each other anyway. Yixing messed up enough to cause them to stop halfway through, and was still far beyond what Sehun could have done.

By the time the period was over, they could go through half of the routine with music. Sehun clapped, grinned, admired. Jongin and Yixing chatted together and Luhan dropped down beside Sehun.

“Was I good?”

Sehun gave him a thumbs up. “Fabulous.”

Luhan beamed. “You should join in next time,” he continued as Yixing and Jongin came over to see what they were talking about.

Sehun snorted. “Right, as if I could ever compare to you guys.”

Luhan frowned. “That doesn’t matter,” he said, voice too soft to be casual. Sehun stood up, ignoring Luhan’s fingers that brushed down his sleeve.

“Come on, let’s go. It’s lunch time.”

 

*

 

_sehun_

 

Sehun frowned at himself for being so ridiculously jumpy at the single-word text as he typed a reply.

 

_Jongin. Yo, what’s up?_

 

_u busy?_

 

Sehun glanced at the homework he’d promised himself (and Kyungsoo) he would do before tomorrow. _Nah, why?_

 

_boored. come ovr n play a game w me_

 

_Is it so hard for you to type out actual words?_

_yes. get ur butt ovr here. its three stops from urs ill meat u at the station_

_*meet_

_stfu or ill give u the shit controller_

_S-ing t f u. See you in a little while._

_cool_

 

Sehun grinned and grabbed his wallet and keys, checking the time as he left the house. He should be able to catch the subway that came in seven minutes and get to Jongin’s stop in barely any time at all. He dashed down the stairs and leaped through the doors, making it just in time. He sat down, worrying his lip with his teeth as he mentally ticked off the train’s progress, slowly filling with a mixed sense of anticipation and anxiousness.

 

_Caught the subway, almost there._

 

The reply came just as he was standing up to get off. He checked it as he stepped onto the platform.

 

_ok im here already_

 

Sehun glanced around and saw Jongin leaning against a pillar in old jeans and a hoodie pulled over his head, spinning his phone in the fingers of one hand against his thigh. He hoped he wasn’t blushing as much as he thought he was when he approached and poked Jongin in the arm. “Hey.”

“Yo.” Jongin pushed away from the column and smiled, stretching his arms over his head as he started to walk off. Sehun followed, picking up the pace when Jongin called at him to hurry up.

“I don’t want to be in pants any longer than necessary,” he said, and Sehun stopped dead.

Jongin turned around after a few metres, when he realized Sehun was no longer trying to follow. “You right?”

“ _What_ did you say?”

“No one should be required to wear pants at home during the holidays,” Jongin said breezily, beckoning impatiently. “Come _on_.”

Sehun took a deep breath and tried (to his credit, very hard) to not think about Jongin with no pants. He shook his head firmly and trotted to catch up, assuming his normal position — just behind Jongin, and slightly to the side.

Jongin set a brisk pace, striding to his house about ten minutes from the station. It was a nice house, Sehun thought as they approached up the hill, climbing the stairs that separated it from the other houses; and it was a good size. Not enormous, like Kris’ in one of the expensive suburbs, not tiny like the flat Zitao shared with his mother. But there were signs of age in the corners, and the smell of stale smoke in the carpets. Jongin toed off his sneakers and kicked them into place against the wall. Sehun took his off more carefully, guest-type courtesy, lining them up with a row of high-heeled shoes.

“Who else lives with you?”

“My parents and one of my sisters and a college student from out of town,” Jongin replied, leading him into a dim living room. It was not the cleanest of living rooms that Sehun had seen. “But they’re not around much. Want coke?”

“Uh, sure.” Sehun nodded, sitting down on the couch when Jongin pointed at it imperiously. Jongin ducked into the next room and Sehun looked around, noting the art on the walls, someone’s socks draped over the cabinet, the mints in a bowl on the coffee table beside a small glass ashtray, the flowers hanging from the curtain rail in bottles against the window.

“Catch.”

Sehun looked up just in time to fumblingly catch the can tossed at him. He held it gingerly, knowing better to open thrown soda while Jongin laughed and cracked open his own, placing it on the table with a bowl of chips. “Be right back,” he said, leaving through another door, and Sehun put the can down next to Jongin’s. Jongin was, indeed, right back. Pantsless.

Sehun _felt_ his face heat up. He picked up his drink and slowly read the nutrition information printed on the side, decisively _not_ looking at Jongin as he sat down in front of the TV to set up the game, his boxers stretched taut over his butt—

Sehun made himself stop.

Sehun liked butts.

A lot.

Sehun had been hanging around gay guys for so long that he had forgotten what normal teenage guys were like with each other.

Pantsless.

He cleared his throat quietly and quickly tried to attempt opening his soda as Jongin leaped up to sit on the other end of the couch. He set about making himself a nest of pillows around himself and the arm of the couch, legs spread. Sehun stared at the TV.

“Relax, bro.” Jongin scoffed at Sehun’s stiff pose. “No one else is home. Here, have a cushion.”

Sehun didn’t react quickly enough this time, and took a pillow to the face. He blushed harder as he pulled it from his head and stuffed it behind his back, taking the controller Jongin handed him and settling down. Jongin opened a drawer in the side of the table and brought out a packet of cigarettes, sticking one in his mouth and tossing the pack to Sehun. Sehun set it down next to the bowl of chips without opening it.

He didn’t realize he was staring at the smoke in Jongin’s mouth with an expression of distaste until about fifty seconds later, when Jongin seemed to notice something and his gaze flicked to the packet then to Sehun’s face, his own features displaying a realization of something he’d forgotten. He felt unnaturally hot as he avoided Sehun’s gaze.

“It’s hard to quit, okay,” he muttered defensively around the cigarette.

“I didn’t say anything.”

Jongin stared at Sehun’s chest for a moment longer before turning his attention to the screen. “I’m gonna kick your butt.”

 

*

 

“Jongin,” Sehun said two days later, their third day of spending their afternoons gaming, and Jongin looked up.

“Hm?”

Sehun toyed with the tassels on his cushion. “You know I’m gay, right?”

Jongin snorted. “Of course I know that,” he grinned. “What’s your point?”

Sehun cringed. “Could you please put some more clothes on?”

Jongin blinked then laughed, standing up and shaking his boxer-clad ass exaggeratedly. “Does it make you uncomfortable?”

“Well, a bit.” Sehun palmed his eyes.

Jongin’s return was marked by him throwing a pair of tracksuit pants at Sehun’s head, similar to the ones that he had thankfully covered himself up with. “Those are for you. You can’t be comfortable in those jeans.”

“It’s not about the comfort,” Sehun said automatically.

“Put on the pants, Sehun.”

“…I need to stop spending so much time with Tao, oh my god.”

“And you thought I didn’t know you were gay.”

“Shut up, Jongin.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gonna be putting out a new chapter every couple of days! It's a finished work already so there shouldn't be any delays ;;  
> Please leave kudos/comments if you're liking it!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Why am I so STUPID?” Sehun yelled, grabbing his hair. “It’s not! Even! Important shit! And I’m so confused and everyone likes everyone else and why do I have FEELINGS and why do they HURT and I need to focus on my studies but this is all getting in the way and it’s DUMB—”_
> 
> _“Sehun.” Luhan grabbed the younger boy by both arms and forcefully sat him down. “Sehun, calm down. It’s okay.”_
> 
> _“Emotions!” Sehun yelled. “Everywhere!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: R

 

 

 

“You spent your _entire_ holiday with Jongin?”

“I did. Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“You know what.”

“Well I’m dumb, enlighten me.” Chanyeol grinned that grin of his, the one that sent a shiver down Sehun’s spine.

He pointed his chopsticks at his friend over the table. “Look, I spent pretty much all of last holiday with Kyungsoo, right? And we didn’t even have feelings for each other, let alone kiss or fuck or whatever you seem to think I do with Jongin.”

Chanyeol sighed. “Oh yes, what a shame that was,” he complained and Sehun choked on his kimchi.

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, Tao and I were hoping something would happen with you two. But it never did.”

“Of course it didn’t!” Sehun cried, sauce splattering across the table as he waved his hands frantically. “What the hell, Chanyeol!”

Chanyeol just pouted at him. “It’s disappointing when ships sink.”

“Stop already.”

“No.” Chanyeol stuffed his own kimchi into his mouth obnoxiously, juice smearing across his cheek. Sehun wrinkled his nose. “Well, since I can’t ship you with Kyungsoo anymore, I need a new target. And when one is presented so easily to me…”

“Nothing’s going to happen between me and Jongin,” Sehun denied, secretly hoping that was a lie. One step at a time.

“Too late. It’s shipped.”

“Ugh.” Sehun dropped his head down onto the table, pushing his plate out of the way first and somewhat disrupting the dramatic effect. “You are the absolute worst.”

“Oh,” Chanyeol said abruptly, and Sehun cringed. “I almost forgot. What about Kris?”

“What about Kris?”

“I kind of ship you with him too.”

“I thought you shipped him with _you_ ,” Sehun countered from the table.

Chanyeol let out a convincing scoff. “No, of course not.”

“No? Oh, so Baekhyun’s taken all of your affections, then.”

Sehun raised his head in time to see Chanyeol’s face go through an interesting sequence of contortions. “Don’t be ridiculous!” he waved his arms, thankfully dropping his chopsticks first, eyes wide and still uneven. “Sehun, no! Baekhyun and I are just friends! Platonically! How many times do I have to keep telling you that I am straight?”

“As much as you like, it won’t make a difference, the shade of your face is telling me all I need to know.” Sehun grinned and Chanyeol threw a grape at him. “I’m kidding,” he lied.

“No you’re not,” Chanyeol said flatly.

“No, I’m not.”

 

*

 

“Hey, Jongin,” Sehun said, digging through his fridge for something to feed Jongin while his guest spread his arms and legs, seemingly determined to lay his body over as much couch as physically possible.

“Hm?” Jongin hummed in acknowledgement.

“You said you needed new friends,” Sehun began slowly as he grabbed a plate of dumplings his mother had made a couple of days before and sprinkled water over them before throwing them in the microwave. A lopsided smile pulled up the side of Jongin’s mouth.

“Yeah?”

Sehun plonked himself down next to the couch. “How come?”

Jongin turned his head to look at him. “You got bolder, Sehunnie. You’re so blunt.”

“I know, Kyungsoo always tells me so. Answer me.”

Jongin laughed. “So does that mean you’re comfortable with me now?”

“Answer me,” Sehun repeated, flushing slightly and pouting.

Jongin’s eye widened as his eyebrow went up. “What the fuck is happening to your face?”

Sehun turned his puppy eyes on full blast and stared Jongin right in the face.

“Stop that.”

“ _Jongin_ ,” Sehun whined, grabbing the couch cushions beside Jongin’s shoulder. Jongin grimaced and grabbed Sehun’s face, holding him at arm’s length.

“I like a guy,” Jongin confessed evenly and Sehun stopped scrabbling at his wrist, staring through Jongin’s fingers. “Don’t give me that look, I got through all that confusion, confliction, self-identity crap ages ago, but I don’t think you need to be told that the other guys are complete assholes.”

Sehun nodded.

Jongin smiled. “They’re not really my friends, anyway. I hang out with them because I smoke and because I party. You guys seem way cooler.”

“You quit smoking,” Sehun’s breath was hot against Jongin’s palm and Jongin took it away.

“I’m _quitting,_ ” Jongin corrected. “It doesn’t happen overnight, you know.”

Sehun nodded slowly, wrapping his arms around his knees and considering Jongin’s face.

“Can we eat now?”

“Oh, yeah.” Sehun leaped up and ran to get the dumplings out of the microwave, laying everything out on the coffee table and sitting at the corner. Jongin didn’t move from his position on (over, and around) the couch. He took one and shoved it in his mouth whole. Sehun rolled his eyes.

“We have to go back to school in two days,” Sehun commented casually and Jongin groaned.

“Don’t remind me,” he sighed, flopping dramatically onto his side. “I don’t want to work again.”

Sehun raised an eyebrow. “Have you done any homework at all this break?”

Jongin gave him a derisive look. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

Sehun rolled his eyes. “So, who is it that you like?” he asked casually.

Jongin snorted. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“I would.”

“It’s a secret.” Jongin took another dumpling.

“Is it me?” Sehun grinned jokingly.

“You wish.”

Sehun pretended it didn’t hurt.

“You’re not my type.”

Sehun smirked, the largest smile he could muster. “Oh? What is your type?”

Jongin was quiet as he ate another dumpling. “Shorter than you,” he said finally, licking his fingers as he rolled onto his back again. “Older, too.”

“Ah."

“Definitely quieter than you!”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean, asshole?”

“And cute, with natural hair.”

Sehun awkwardly tugged at a tuft of his lightened hair, but Jongin had his eyes closed and didn’t notice.

“Hey, I’m cute.”

“Whatever you say, dude.”

“Jongin!”

Jongin cracked one eye open. “What is this, describe-Jongin’s-type or try-to-point-out-how-Sehun-is-Jongin’s-type? Anyway, it’s not you. I’d prefer someone who has like… a round face, is self-aware, good at cooking because I suck balls at making food,” Jongin’s lip tugged into a small grin. “Smart, talented… big eyes and nice lips…”

The picture that had been assembling in Sehun’s mind completed itself. “Oh my god.”

Jongin’s eyes flew open as he snapped out of his daydream. He turned to Sehun again with a look of dawning horror.

“Oh my _god_.”

“H-hey, what are you thinking…”

“You… you like… oh my god.” A strange smile was working its way over Sehun’s face, part pain, part worry, part glee. “Wow.”

“Hey, Oh Sehun!”

Sehun cackled and leaped up as Jongin fell off the couch in an attempt to tackle him, dancing out of the way. “Oh, this is too good.” He stopped, standing a little way from where Jongin was sprawled on the floor, groaning into the carpet. “All of this… just for him?”

“All of what?” Jongin looked up.

“Everything; getting closer to him through us, ditching your old buddies, quitting smoking, all that jazz.”

Jongin stared at him and hesitated too long. “Not… not just for that.”

“But mostly.”

“No.”

“You suck at lying, Jongin.”

Jongin groaned again and flopped onto his back. “Please don’t tell anyone?”

Sehun tapped his lips thoughtfully and Jongin scrambled to his feet, grabbing Sehun’s hands. “Please. Please, please, please… don’t tell anybody.”

“Yeah,” Sehun mumbled, looking away. “Of course not.”

“It’s not all because of him. You guys really are way awesomer than the other guys.”

“That’s not hard,” Sehun raised an eyebrow.

Jongin tried a tentative smile. “No, it’s not.”

 

*

 

“Jongin likes Kyungsoo,” Sehun whined, sprawled on his bed with his head holding his phone against the pillow.

“Oh, really? Did he finally say so?” Tao didn’t sound anywhere near as surprised as Sehun would have liked.

“You don’t sound surprised,” Sehun pouted.

“I’m not, really. I called this one like the end of last year.”

Sehun made a whining noise down the phone. “You suck.”

“Okay. How did you find out, anyway? Did Kyungsoo tell you?”

“No, Jongin told me. He hasn’t said anything to Kyungsoo.”

“Should you have told me?”

“Nope.”

Tao snorted. “Well, I’ll keep it quiet, then. Shall I tell _you_ something?”

“Uh, sure? What?”

Tao chuckled into the phone and Sehun frowned. “You know how Kyungsoo ships you with basically everyone?”

“Yeah?”

Tao’s voice lowered to a conspiratorial whisper. “He doesn’t ship you with Jongin.”

 

*

 

“Hey, Sehun!” Baekhyun cried, giving Sehun’s hair a thorough ruffle as he sat down in the seat beside him. Sehun looked up blearily from his tome of a history textbook.

“What do you want?” he mumbled.

Baekhyun smiled sympathetically and stood back up, kneading his hands into Sehun’s stiff shoulders. Sehun let out an involuntary moan and Baekhyun snorted.

“Just saying hi.”

Sehun dropped his face onto his book and grunted. “Hi.”

“School’s almost over,” Baekhyun grinned, encouraging but not sympathetic.

“Yeah,” Sehun sighed, then his head snapped up. “Wait what are you on about? Term just started! It's the first week!”

Baekhyun grinned. “Just trying to cheer you up, Sehunnie.”

Sehun grunted and lowered his head to the library desk once more. Baekhyun’s hands felt nice on his shoulders and he struggled not to moan again. He was just so tired. He hated school. Jongin must have been rubbing off on him. Baekhyun’s hands slipped off, one remaining between his shoulder blades as he sat down.

“Sehun, are you alright?”

“Hm.” Sehun shrugged. “I hate history.”

“Is that all?”

Sehun looked up. “What do you mean?”

“You seem a little out of it, lately. Did something happen in the break?”

Sehun pouted, the textbook page cool against his cheek. “Sort of, I guess.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

Sehun flushed. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry.” It was true that Jongin’s unintentional rejection had hit him way harder than he had expected, the other boy’s crush on Kyungsoo just salt in the wound. Tao knowing about the whole deal and even shipping Kyungsoo and Jongin, even just a little bit, was a nice sprinkle of lemon juice over the whole bloody mess. But mid-year exams were just a couple of months away and in the big scheme of things, it was dumb. Really dumb. Fucking du— _why could he not stop thinking about this?_

He was snapped abruptly out of his wallowing by Baekhyun’s lips pressing into his cheek. Sehun’s eyes flew open wide and he felt his skin burn, looking straight into Baekhyun’s concerned face.

“It’ll be okay,” Baekhyun whispered, squeezing his arm before pulling away. “We’ll get through this.” He stood up and walked off, leaving Sehun to stare bewilderedly after him.

 

*

 

_Does Baekhyun like me? Does Baekhyun like me? Does Baekhyun like me?_

_Does Baekhyun like me?_

 

*

 

“Hey, Sehun!” Luhan chirped, jumping at Sehun’s back as the younger student stood by his locker. “Sehun? Are you alright?” 

Sehun’s head snapped around to stare at his senior, before grabbing Luhan’s wrist and dragging him out of the building. Luhan stumbled slightly then followed, saying nothing until they got to the far edge of the oval.

“Sehun?”

“AHHH,” Sehun yelled in his face and Luhan took a shocked step back.

“What?”

“AHHH!” Sehun repeated, waving his arms above his head.

“AHHH!” he kicked viciously at a soda can someone had left behind. He picked up a stick and pegged it at the goal posts. “AHHH!” he raised his hands up in the air, stared at the sky and balled his fists. “ _AHHHH!_ ”

Luhan placed a hand on his back. “Sehun—”

“Why am I so STUPID?” Sehun yelled, grabbing his hair. “It’s not! Even! Important shit! And I’m so confused and everyone likes everyone else and why do I have FEELINGS and why do they HURT and I need to focus on my studies but this is all getting in the way and it’s DUMB—”

“Sehun.” Luhan grabbed the younger boy by both arms and forcefully sat him down. “Sehun, calm down. It’s okay.”

“Emotions!” Sehun yelled. “Everywhere!”

“ _Sehun!_ ” Luhan tightened his grip and shook him roughly. “ _Breathe!_ ”

Sehun snapped his mouth shut, panting shallowly through his nose. Luhan shook his head. “Breathe properly. Breathe out. All the way out. _Do it_.”

Sehun huffed out a few times, emptying his lungs of air.

“Good. Now in. Keep breathing in until I say stop.”

Sehun dragged a breath in slowly, keeping watch of Luhan who was staring right back at him. He stopped when his lungs were full.

“More.”

Sehun grimaced, shifting his diaphragm and hitching in another small puff.

“That’s it. Now out again while I count. Eight… seven… six… five… four… three… two… one. And in for six… five… four… three… two… one. There you go. Good now?” Luhan asked with a slight smirk.

Sehun nodded, licking over his teeth and letting his breathing go back to normal.

“Want to tell me what happened? Or is it kinda personal?” Luhan asked gently, peering at Sehun’s expression.

Sehun flushed and sighed. There was just so much sexual tension going on everywhere — Chanyeol determinedly “not-gushing” over Baekhyun constantly, Tao’s not-so-subtle attempts to use Sehun to get closer to Kris, Sehun’s own sorta-crush on Kris, the whole Jongin fiasco, Kyungsoo’s face tightening with disapproval whenever Jongin was around, and Baekhyun — okay, to be fair, Sehun had always found Baekhyun hot — but did he really have to go and _kiss_ him and make things so much more… oh, okay, Luhan.

“It’s kind of a long story.”

Luhan slipped a cigarette between his teeth and lit it without taking his eyes of Sehun’s face. “I like long stories,” he said simply, and leaned a little closer. “Do you like telling them, though, Sehun?”

Sehun sighed again. “Maybe not this one.”

“Okay.” Luhan patted his knee and smiled. “You’re a cute one, little carrot.”

“What did you call me?”

“Little Carrot.”

“Uh, why?”

Luhan grinned. “Your track uniform. It’s crazy, dude. You always put the hood up. You _look like a carrot_.”

Sehun narrowed his eyes. “Minseok warned me this would happen.”

Luhan flashed a peace sign and laughed. “Nickname accepted! Welcome to my salad, Sehunnie!”

Sehun frowned and tapped his lip. “What kind of salad has dumplings and unicorns…?” he pondered aloud, but Luhan didn’t seem to hear him, too busy clinging to his waist.

“Oh my god I’m so excited. I have to tell everyone.” He pulled out his phone and brought it to his face, bouncing on spot as he waited for an answer. “Xiumin-ge? Baozi?? Guess what!”

Sehun leaned his head back and groaned.

 

*

 

Fortunately for Sehun, Baekhyun didn’t give him much time to dwell on the kiss. Sehun almost jumped out of his skin the next day as he shut his locker and caught sight of Baekhyun leaning against the row, waiting for him.

“Christ, you scared me.”

“Sehun, let’s have sex.”

Sehun stopped dead, blinking once. “Um,” he responded eloquently, staring at Baekhyun’s serious face. “What?”

“Let’s have sex,” Baekhyun repeated, shifting against the locker doors to look Sehun in the eyes.

“Uh,” Sehun choked, caught completely off-guard. His brain didn’t seem to be processing information properly. His attention was caught up in Baekhyun’s eyeliner. “What,” he said again, cleared his throat and swallowed. “What about Chanyeol?”

He was so confused. Chanyeol and Baekhyun had a thing. Everyone knew that. Chanyeol devoted his time to Baekhyun and Baekhyun wasn’t stupid. Baekhyun was actually really smart. Baekhyun gave Chanyeol food. _Baekhyun kissed Sehun in the library_.

Baekhyun looked away. “Chanyeol is… different,” he murmured, gnawing on his lip for a second before looking back up. “Don't worry about him, Sehun.”

“I,” Sehun swallowed. Baekhyun reached over and wrapped his fingers around his wrist.

“Don’t you want to? Are you waiting for someone else? Someone special?”

Jongin’s dreamy expression as he described Kyungsoo as his ideal type flashed through Sehun’s mind. Chanyeol desperately denying his crush on Baekhyun. Jongin squishing Kyungsoo’s face. Jongin didn’t like Sehun. Jongin would never like Sehun. Sehun’s lips tightened. “No… no, okay.” He looked Baekhyun in the eyes. “Let’s… let’s do it.”

Baekhyun smiled and tightened his grip on Sehun’s wrist, gently pulling him away, out of school, down the road to the public bus stop.

“We’ll get absences,” Sehun mumbled, regretting the stupid, nerdy comment as soon as it had left his mouth.

“I’ll make it worth it,” Baekhyun promised, removing his hand to flag down the bus. Sehun swallowed.

They didn't speak on the trip, though Baekhyun slid his hand into Sehun’s between their thighs. Sehun’s heart was pounding. He was skipping school. This was happening. Baekhyun’s hand was legitimately _in his hand_. Sehun was about to have sex for the first time.

He felt a little terrified. Baekhyun’s thumb was rubbing circles on his knuckles.

“Here we are,” Baekhyun said quietly, removing his hand as he stepped to the front of the bus, leaving Sehun stumbling to follow. He led Sehun a little way down the street, then up the path; Sehun looked up and — holy crap Baekhyun’s family was rich. There was no keyhole on the door. There was a key _pad_. Baekhyun punched in some numbers and Sehun squirmed, suddenly acutely aware of just how attractive those fingers were. The transfer student smiled at him as he pushed open the door, gesturing for Sehun to enter first.

Sehun stepped over the threshold, kicking off his shoes and nudging them into place neatly against the wall. Baekhyun closed the door and rested his hand against the small of Sehun’s back. Sehun stiffened. Baekhyun smelled really nice. Baekhyun’s hand was in his hair. Baekhyun was really close. Baekhyun was kissing him. Baekhyun. His tongue trailed over Sehun’s lower lip but had returned safely behind his teeth by the time he had pulled back far enough for Sehun to see his face. _This way,_ he said silently, tugging on Sehun’s arms to pull him down the hall.

Baekhyun’s room was spacious, light and neat, and his bed was huge. Baekhyun ushered him in, closed the door, then grabbed Sehun by the shoulders and threw him onto the quilt.

Sehun was hyperaware of every point on his body that Baekhyun was in contact with.

“I,” he whispered into Baekhyun’s dark eyes, “Don’t know,” the older boy’s hand was on his thigh, “What to do.”

“Shh, it’s okay.” Baekhyun pecked his lips. “Trust me.”

Sehun nodded and Baekhyun pushed him down, kneeling over his hips.

“Tell me to stop any time,” he whispered into Sehun’s jawline, “And we’ll go back to school, okay?”

“Okay,” Sehun whispered, each of Baekhyun’s fingers burning him. “This… this is okay.”

That was only partially true. Sehun had never been so turned on in his entire life and Baekhyun was barely even touching him. He arched his back to assist Baekhyun taking his blazer off, throwing it to the side of the room. He started working on Sehun’s buttons and Sehun closed his eyes. Trust me, Baekhyun had said, so he let him do what he wanted, and within seconds he was lying bare-chested beneath the older boy’s piercing gaze.

“You’re so skinny,” he murmured, and Sehun flushed, feeling horribly self-conscious. Although, he was aware of how thin he was. He and Chanyeol both were of the type to not gain weight, no matter how much unhealthy food they ate — a definite asset when you were friends with Do Kyungsoo — and Tao always got so angry at them for it, whining about his stomach and hips and thighs, despite his ridiculous martial arts muscles. The thought made him smile a little and Baekhyun smiled back at him, shedding his own uniform shirt. Sehun’s eyes widened at his perfectly flat stomach, dipping waistline and faint pecs. Eighteen-year-old boys were not supposed to look like that. He felt an embarrassing throb run through his groin and wondered how there could possibly enough blood left in his face to blush. Baekhyun leant down and kissed him again; Sehun’s arms crept over the older boy’s shoulders and his fingers pressed into the cool, smooth skin of Baekhyun’s back. His hips rose of their own accord, pressing him against the line of Baekhyun’s body. He felt Baekhyun smile against his mouth and inwardly cringed — hormones were flying through him, sending sparks over his skin; anticipation and the mere presence of another body so close to his was arousing him further than he’d ever felt.

His earlier doubts were fading. He wanted this so, so badly. Baekhyun brought his knees up under his hips, balancing his weight on his legs, his hands sliding down between their bodies to tug Sehun’s belt from its loops. Sehun whimpered, curling the fingers of one hand in Baekhyun’s hair, but as soon as Baekhyun’s fingers started fumbling with his buttons and zipper his concerns came flying back to mind. What if Baekhyun was turned off by pubic hair? He seemed to know what he was doing — how would Sehun’s penis compare to others he’d dealt with? _What if Baekhyun expected him to bottom?_ Sehun froze, but Baekhyun pulled his lips away at that exact moment and didn’t notice. His kisses roamed down Sehun’s neck, over his bony clavicle and down his breastbone. Shivers ran right down Sehun’s spine as lips passed over his navel, continuing down, and Baekhyun’s chin brushed against the erection jutting out through his undone fly. He hissed in a sharp intake of breath and Baekhyun chuckled, not moving his face as he grabbed Sehun’s underwear and pushed all the layers off his hips at once.

Sehun’s dick sprang up and slapped Baekhyun neatly in the cheek. Sehun wanted to die from embarrassment.

Baekhyun just laughed harder, though, sitting back on his heels to let Sehun kick his pants off his ankles. The younger could see Baekhyun’s own cock bulging in his school pants, and that made him feel a little better. At least Baekhyun was sort of a little turned on by him. Well. He wasn’t turned _off_ , anyway.

Baekhyun tugged at his own belt, throwing the rest of his clothes off quickly. But Sehun didn’t have time to appraise Baekhyun’s exposed body before he was nudging Sehun’s legs apart, crouching in between his thighs and— shit, _shit, shit_. The noise that escaped Sehun’s throat as Baekhyun went down on him would haunt him for months to come. He bucked up involuntarily, spluttering out lisping apologies when Baekhyun jerked in surprise. But instead of pulling away, Baekhyun just planted firm hands on his hips to hold him down, his lips sinking right to the base of Sehun’s cock.

Sehun keened, legs trembling, fists balling in Baekhyun’s blankets — and suddenly the heat was gone, moisture from Baekhyun’s tongue leaving him cold in the still air.

“Oh, yeah,” Baekhyun chuckled sheepishly, gesturing for Sehun to get off the bed — which he did, utterly confused — and throwing the top layer of sheets off onto the floor of his room. “The quilt stains,” he explained matter-of-factly, though with an undertone of past experience.

Sehun took the moment between standing up and being pulled back onto the bed to look at Baekhyun’s junk. It was attractive, Sehun thought, about the same size as Sehun’s own, except clean-shaven and perfectly straight. That was about as much information as he was able to gather, and then he was lying on his back again, this time on cool sheets and Baekhyun’s tongue—

Sehun’s hands tensed into claws and he gripped at the sheets again, at the pillows above his head, even Baekhyun’s hair, _anything_ , because he was too horny, it was too much, _fuck_ it felt good. He cried out, loudly, as Baekhyun dragged his tongue up the underside of his cock, flicking right where he was most sensitive and giggling when Sehun jerked in response.

“Wait,” he whispered, sliding off the bed and ducking his head underneath the mattress. Sehun closed his eyes and took breaths in through his mouth, his right hand creeping to his hip. He didn’t particularly enjoy the idea of Baekhyun seeing him touch himself, but he just… really…

“Here we go!” Baekhyun sang softly, popping back into view, waving a squeeze tube and a condom in Sehun’s face. He tossed the condom aside and pressed the lube into Sehun’s hand. “Open me up?”

Sehun nodded, dry-mouthed, sitting up slightly. Baekhyun grinned at him, once more perched over his hips, very naked but obscenely adorable and it _wasn’t fair_. He ducked his head, squeezing lube onto his fingers. Baekhyun was still grinning and Sehun wanted to kiss him a whole lot and — wait, he could do that. So he leaned forward, nosing Baekhyun’s cheek as a request, let the older boy tilt his head to kiss him, and slid his hand down to find Baekhyun’s hole.

He pushed his finger in, and it went in easily — more easily than he had expected, than what he had experienced from tentatively fingering himself in the shower, and it hit him again that Baekhyun had done this before. How many boys had Baekhyun fucked and pleasured? And once again Sehun felt horribly inadequate.

He gently drew his finger in and out, and Baekhyun sighed happily over his cheek.

“You haven’t done this before, have you, Sehunnie?” he breathed, and Sehun flushed brightly as he nodded. “Don’t be embarrassed, it’s okay. I’ll help you out. I’ll make you feel _so_ good, Sehunnie.” He pecked the younger boy’s nose. “But I want to feel good too, you know? So listen to me, yeah?”

Sehun nodded. Baekhyun’s lips curled into a lazy smile and he pressed the lube back into Sehun’s free hand. “Use lots.”

Sehun closed his eyes, lashes fluttering. One of his hands was laid on the small of Baekhyun’s back — Baekhyun had _butt dimples_ — and he had the other pressed deep inside Baekhyun’s body, adding more fingers at the coaxing the older boy whispered into the skin below his ear.

And then Baekhyun was shifting and lifting himself off Sehun’s hand, looking down at him with his slim, sharp face, his smudged eyeliner somehow making him look twice as hot, and his hand was warm and tight but gentle as he slid his fist down Sehun’s length, nudging open the rolled condom as he went.

And Baekhyun was holding the base of his dick between finger and thumb, sinking down onto it, moaning, crying out, bouncing like his life depended on it, Sehun had never felt so good in his life, he couldn’t hold back his own noises, he couldn’t control the way his hips bucked up to slap against Baekhyun’s descending ass, it was too good, he was going to—

 

*

 

Sehun flopped onto the bus seat, dumping his bags and legs beside him so no one else could take the other half of the bench. Kyungsoo frowned at him as he and Tao slid into the seats behind him, and Chanyeol and Jongin in front.

He leaned against the window and closed his eyes, the memory of a mutual orgasm dancing in his mind.

The back of Chanyeol’s head made him feel sick.

Kyungsoo gently grabbed his arm and pulled it over the back of the seat so he could slide his small hand between Sehun’s fingers. “Sehunnie, are you alright? What’s wrong?”

Sehun’s eyebrows tightened and he didn’t open his eyes as he remembered the touch of Kyungsoo’s fingers on his forehead and the words they had shared; _Everyone else teases me about Yifan…_ I _know you’d never do that to Tao…_

He turned his head to stare at Kyungsoo helplessly. “I’ll call you later, okay?” he mumbled, dry-mouthed, and his two best friends stared back with curiosity and concern. But just as Kyungsoo parted his lips to say something else, Chanyeol swung around violently to face them and Sehun nearly jumped clean out of his skin.

Chanyeol’s face was so bright and happy and earnest and Sehun was _actually going to be sick._

The words were directed at Tao, though, so Sehun closed his eyes again and squeezed Kyungsoo’s hand.

 

*

 

Kyungsoo picked up the phone without saying anything.

“Soo?” Sehun whispered after long seconds of silence.

“I’m here,” Kyungsoo replied.

Sehun pressed the top half of his face into his pillow. “Soo, I… I really fucked up.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> High schoolers do dumb shit ay.  
> They're both 18 tho dw


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“I have a plan,” Chanyeol announced to Kyungsoo and Tao as he ran up to them at the interchange._
> 
> _“Huh?” said Tao, and Kyungsoo pointed at him in agreement._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13  
> Warning for implications of underage sex + drinking

 

 

 

Jongin leaned over and peered at Sehun, blinking in his face. Sehun gazed back at him blandly.

“Yo, come on man. What’s wrong? You’ve been out of it since yesterday afternoon.”

Sehun sighed and sank down to the floor of the train, dropping onto his ass, leaving his bag to flop behind him. An old woman glared at him disapprovingly. Sehun and Jongin ignored her.

“I am the worst person ever,” Sehun groaned, leaning his head against the cool metal of the pole.

“No way!” Jongin chuckled, sitting down facing him. “What happened? I won’t laugh. I promise.” His smile slipped when Sehun continued to stare blankly ahead. “Dude? Dude, come on. You can tell me, what’s wrong?”

Sehun looked up and silently choked. Jongin was really close. He could see acne through his BB cream. His eyes were wide and earnest and concerned and obscenely brown and his lips were plump and inviting and held just a trace of cigarette smoke and Sehun still really, really liked this boy, who had become one of his best friends. “I,” he stuttered, and his voice cracked. He swallowed. “I, uh,”

Jongin pivoted on his butt and pressed up against Sehun’s side, sliding an arm around his broad, bony shoulders. “You what?”

Sehun dropped his head into Jongin’s neck. His words were stuck in his throat and he felt horrible. He had lost his virginity to a boy his best friend was in _love_ with, for pure lust.

He felt like the worst slut ever.

Jongin smelled nice; his cologne was more warm and friendly than Baekhyun’s sharp Ralph Lauren. Sehun took it in under the pretense of calming his breathing. Jongin stroked his hair. Sehun tugged awkwardly on his own thumb.

“This is our stop,” Jongin murmured, hopping up and helping Sehun to his feet. “Come on.”

He draped his arm over Sehun’s shoulders again as soon as they crossed onto the platform. He didn’t say anything else, but he smelled like comfort and was obviously worried, and that made Sehun feel a little better.

 

*

 

Chanyeol had actually been the first to notice Sehun’s change of mood.

He had been roaming the campus during his free period, in search of his lovely Baekhyun— wait.

He had been roaming during his free period in search of Baekhyun, when he had spied him jumping over the oval fence with Sehun. They began to cross towards the school, standing a good platonic distance from each other. Baekhyun was talking, and Sehun seemed to be fascinated by grass.

“Sehun!” he yelled across the oval. “Baekhyunnie!”

He could _see_ Sehun jump nearly out of his skin and stop dead. He gave a small wave and hurried off in a different direction, leaving Baekhyun to shrug and smile as he walked up to Chanyeol alone.

“Hey you,” he greeted, hopping up on tip-toes to wrap his arms around Chanyeol’s neck. “What are you up to?”

“Looking for you,” Chanyeol grinned, flushing. “Where did you guys go?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “Don’t worry your perfect-attendance-d head,” he chuckled.

Chanyeol pouted. “I wanna go next time…”

A strange smirk crossed Baekhyun’s face. “One day.”

Chanyeol’s face lit up. “Really?”

Baekhyun tapped his nose with a slender finger. “Sure, honey.” He pulled away and ignored the further reddening of Chanyeol’s complexion. “Let’s go to the vending machine. Want to share some corn claws?”

Chanyeol nodded eagerly, completely forgetting about Sehun.

 

*

 

“I have a plan,” Chanyeol announced to Kyungsoo and Tao as he ran up to them at the interchange. He glanced at his watch. Four minutes to run it by them before Jongin and Sehun’s subway arrived.

“Huh?” said Tao, and Kyungsoo pointed at him in agreement.

Chanyeol waved his sheet of paper at them. “Operation Make Oh Sehun Happy Again. Henceforth to be known as Operation MOSHA, got that?” he looked at his two friends seriously over the top of his wonky glasses. Tao nodded solemnly. Kyungsoo narrowed his eyes. Chanyeol cleared his throat. “This plan covers the potential next three days, depending on today’s success rate,” he read. “First step: approach Sehun. This was proven to be a problem following yesterday’s mystery events. We will not be proceeding until contact has been established.”

Tao pulled out his phone to look up ‘established’. Kyungsoo fixed his tie. Chanyeol continued.

“Once initial contact has been established, avoid the topic of Sehun’s mystery issue, so he doesn’t feel the need to escape. We will use the group atmosphere to make him feel at ease, and subliminally condition him out of sadness using cheeriness. Any questions so far?”

Tao raised his hand. “Yeol, how do you spell sublimlinabally?”

Chanyeol sighed, “We’re gonna make him feel happy by acting happy, yeah?”

“Oh!” Tao nodded. “Okay, I understand.”

Chanyeol checked his watch. Just under three minutes. “Today’s options are food based, and take place after school. Option one: Kyungsoo therapy. Hopefully in the form of cookies and—”

“Hold on,” Kyungsoo shook his head. “I can’t do tonight, Chanyeol. I’m going to my dad’s place.”

Chanyeol pulled a face. “Why are you so difficult,” he whined, “This is Sehun we’re talking about! We have to help our friend!”

Tao knocked his knuckles against Chanyeol’s wrist. “It’s okay, Chanyeol, I’ll help.”

Chanyeol beamed at him. “Okay, so the next plan after Kyungsoo is bubble tea! We treat Sehun to his favourite to cheer him up.”

“I vote for this plan!” Tao punched the air “Wait, though, do you have money?”

Chanyeol sucked in his lips — a habit he had picked up from Sehun — and released them with a pop. “I can get some.”

“You make that sound so dodgy,” Kyungsoo pointed out.

Chanyeol smoothed his hair off his forehead. “No one can resist me.”

Kyungsoo pretended to gag and Chanyeol frowned, hurt. Tao wasn’t listening. “Then what do we do with bubble tea?”

“Well,” Chanyeol said, smile back on his face as he turned to Tao, “The idea is that we just show Sehun that we love him and either he will realize he can trust us with his problem, or he’ll feel better and start being happy again.”

Tao thrust up his fist again. “Yeah!”

Kyungsoo sighed. “Tao… I really don’t understand that how half the time you’re so perceptive about interpersonal relationships you’re basically on my level, but the rest of the time you just kind of bumble your way along like baby Chanyeol…”

“Hey!” Chanyeol whined, but was prevented from complaining further as Kyungsoo’s phone rang.

Kyungsoo pulled a face as he answered. “Hello? Yes I know it’s you, Jongin.” He paused for a second. “Wait, what? Are you stupid? Ugh… fine. Yeah, fine. Bye.” He looked at his friends. “Sehun and Jongin are dumb. Let’s go.”

 

*

 

Sehun stopped at the base of the stairs. Jongin turned to look at him. “You okay?”

Sehun took a breath. “I don’t want to go up.”

Jongin pulled him to the side, out of the foot traffic. “What is it you don’t want to see, Sehunnie?”

Sehun pulled a face. “Chanyeol,” he mumbled.

Jongin stared, then pulled out his phone, keeping his eyes on Sehun as he dialed. “Hello? Kyungsoo? Yeah, it’s me. Sehunnie and I missed the stop so we’re gonna turn around and come ba— shut up! Just go to school without us, we’ll catch up. Asshole. Bye.”

“What?”

Jongin put his phone away and blinked. “Well, that gives us a good twenty minutes to go get coffee before we head to school. You have first class off anyway. Nerd. Come here.” he opened his arms and pulled Sehun into them, and Sehun was reminded for the second time in so many minutes that he really liked Jongin. He hugged back, burying his face in Jongin’s shoulder.

“I fucked the guy Chanyeol likes,” he mumbled. Jongin hummed in acknowledgment and patted his back. “And I don’t know what to do about it.”

Jongin pulled back slightly and tugged him in the direction of the other exit, the one close to the coffee shop and away from the school bus stop. “Was it a one-time thing, or?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Sehun grimaced.

“Then what’s the problem? It’s in the past. Chanyeol doesn’t need to find out. Move on.”

“But—!” Sehun frowned.

“What?”

“I can’t do that!”

“Why not?”

Sehun looked down in frustration. “Because friends aren’t supposed to sleep with each other’s crushes and then pretend it _never happened_!”

“Hey, calm down. I’m just saying, there’s no point in wallowing over it for too long. Maybe Chanyeol won’t mind if you just tell him?”

Sehun scoffed and Jongin sighed. “Okay, not that either. How do you take your coffee?”

Sehun blushed bright red as Jongin eyed him expectantly. “Hot chocolate,” he admitted after a moment, and Jongin chuckled. He went up to the vendor, ordering a long black for himself and Sehun’s hot chocolate.

“Thank you,” Sehun muttered gratefully when Jongin returned, taking the paper cup.

Jongin pressed his lips to his, testing to see if it was too hot to drink already. “You can’t avoid him forever. He’s like, your best friend in the world. You four are like inseparable.”

“Hm.” Sehun smiled slightly to himself as they wandered slowly to the bus stop. “Yeah, we kind of are…”

Jongin gave his shoulder a pat. “You’ll sort things out, Sehunnie! Don’t worry about it. So how was the sex?”

Sehun spluttered hot chocolate all down his chin, leaning forward to keep it off his uniform. “What?” he choked

Jongin cackled. “The sex. With Baekhyun. Was it good?”

Sehun could feel his face burning right up to his hairline and right down under his collar. “Uh. Yeah. Yeah it was. I guess. I mean. I don’t really, uh, have anything else to base it off.”

He took a sip of his drink to occupy his face, right as Jongin slapped him on the back. Chocolate dripped down his chin once again and he shot Jongin a foul look. “Yeah, well, as if you’re some kind of sex god.”

“Psh.” Jongin scoffed. “I lost my virginity last year. Not as vanilla as you, man.”

Sehun spluttered. “To who?!”

Jongin shrugged. “Some older girl I met at a party. Her name was like Yura or something?”

Sehun stopped dead.

“What?” Jongin turned.

“Did you say Yura?” Sehun asked faintly.

“Um, yes?”

“Park Yura?”

“Yeah! That was it. You know her?”

“As in Chanyeol’s sister Yura Park Yura?”

Jongin blinked. “What?”

Then his eyes went huge. “Wait, what?”

 

*

 

Despite Jongin’s (slightly tremulous) assurance that Chanyeol would definitely forgive them both, Sehun wasn’t sure he was ready to face Chanyeol. What made it even worse was that Chanyeol had apparently chosen that day to be even more cheerful than he was in his normal Happy Virus state. Sehun had seen Chanyeol’s grin wiped clean off his face only a couple of times throughout their friendship, and it was one of the things he never wanted to experience again. He could imagine it; smile dropping into a shocked gape, the light in his eyes dimming to a dull reflection of betrayal, his wide shoulders slumping, his oversized frame folding in on itself. And then the worst part — the terrible fake smile he forced onto his face while he pretended to be okay.

“Sehun! Sehun!”

So close to the end of school, Sehun thought desolately, struggling to keep his balance as Chanyeol came flying up the corridor and crashed into his back. “Sehun, hurry up, Tao and I are taking you to bubble tea!”

Sehun turned slightly and frowned over his shoulder. “Now? I have track practice.”

Chanyeol laughed, wrapping his arms comfortably around Sehun’s shoulders. “Psh, doesn't sound nearly as fun as coming out with me, right? Besides, you can skip! It’s not important.”

“I can’t skip!”

“Oh shush, of course you can! I saw you do it yesterday.”

All the blood drained from Sehun’s face. Chanyeol’s grin dropped a notch. No, no, no, that wasn’t what he intended. Sehun was supposed to laugh and make some sort of snarky comeback or a nerdy remark about education and staying on campus during school hours. Chanyeol began hauling him to the exit. “Let’s go! Adventure!”

Sehun protested weakly, trying to pull free from Chanyeol’s death grip. “Yeol, I’m tired.. I just want to go to track, and then go home…”

Chanyeol’s eyebrows contorted. “It’s okay… you can be tired with us, right?”

“Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol was starting to panic. Sehun was trying to pull away — but Sehun gravitated _towards_ people when he was upset.

“Sehun, are you okay?” he shoved his face close. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

Sehun caught Chanyeol’s chest in a vicious backhanded slap. Chanyeol stumbled backwards in shock.

“I’m going to track,” Sehun yelled over his shoulder as he strode away.

“Sehun!” Tao yelled as Sehun stormed past, spinning on his heel. “Where are you going? Aren’t you coming with—?”

“ _No!_ ” Sehun screamed, heat pounding.

 

*

 

Tao took a sip of bubble tea before flopping back on Chanyeol’s bed. “So, Chanyeol,” he began, settling down. “What’s plan C?”

Chanyeol grinned, strumming idly on his guitar. “I’ll show you.”

 

*

 

Jongin came out of nowhere, jabbing his fingers into Sehun’s sides, and Sehun nearly had a heart attack as he spasmed into the wall.

“WHAT THE FUCK?” he screeched, spinning gracelessly. Jongin was grinning blithely with his hands behind his back. Sehun was not amused.

“Have you sorted things out with Chanyeol yet?”

“No I fucking haven’t, I haven’t even spoken to him,” Sehun snapped, rubbing his waist. “That hurt!”

“Let’s go then.”

“Where?”

“Oval. Chanyeol says it’s very important you join us for lunch.”

Sehun’s heart dropped to his toes. “Jongin!”

“Don’t be a pussy.”

Jongin’s grip was like a vice. Sehun struggled in vain, Jongin obliviously dragging him toward where Sehun, Chanyeol and Tao usually had lunch together. Sehun was surprised to see Kyungsoo there as well as they approached — usually Kyungsoo studied during lunchtimes. Chanyeol had his guitar and ignored them as they sat down, strumming happily and singing.

Sehun wanted to disappear, but Jongin wasn’t showing any signs of letting go of his wrist any time soon.

“ _Kyungsoo_!” Chanyeol sang, “ _Wonderful Kyungsoo! You are the greatest! I love you so! God of cooking, please continue to make me food… I mean… please continue to make us all food, until we die!_ ”

His song ended with an elegant split chord, and Tao and Jongin started clapping. Kyungsoo burst out laughing, grinning at his knees. Sehun noticed Jongin let go of him to clap and considered making a run for it, until Chanyeol’s head whipped around and stared him right in the eyes.

“This next one is for Sehun,” he grinned. Sehun should have run. He shifted uncomfortably. “We all contributed to this work.”

Chanyeol coughed, then beamed again, beginning to strum.

 

“ _Oh Sehun_

_Precious Oh Sehun—_

_Please don’t be sad,_

_Don’t you know we love you very much?_

_You won over Kyungsoo’s heart_

_And now he spoils you_

_With cookies that could have been given to me—_ ”

 

“Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo deadpanned.

Chanyeol paused the song for a moment. “Kyungsoo, shush. You’re interrupting the song.”

 

“ _But that’s okay…_

_Together with Kyungsoo, you and Tao and I_

_Can seem even taller, right?_ ”

 

Kyungsoo let out an indignant shriek while Tao laughed like a hyena, settling back into a pleased grin and amused chuckles as the next verse started.

 

“ _You won over Zitao’s heart_

_True friendship is_

_When he could totally kick your butt at wushu_

_But he doesn’t_

_If he ever looks to be punishing my ass_

_Please protect me by persuading him to go easy, okay?_

_You won over Jongin’s heart_

_Playing games with him_

_All holidays, pretending to do your homework_

_We all know you guys did no work at all_

_Who are you kidding_

_Also, Sehun, you should dance with him one day_.”

 

Sehun was staring determinedly at his crossed legs. Chanyeol paused once again to glance at the top of his head. “We all know you totally could, by the way,” he stated, before starting to sing again.

 

“ _And you won my heart_

_Because you are the worst little shit_

_Seriously are you even the youngest?_

_I appreciate your pranks_

_Nobody else dares to prank Kyungsoo with me_

_Even if you let me take the blame…_

_And you won my heart_

_I don’t even know why but I’d forgive you anything_

_Don’t you know?_

_Baekhyunnie told me what happened already—_ ”

 

Sehun’s head snapped up as he stared at Chanyeol in horror. Chanyeol smiled serenely, not even missing a beat.

 

“ _Don’t worry so much, it’s totally okay,_

_At least it wasn’t my sister._ ”

 

He turned his head very pointedly in Jongin’s direction.

 

“ _Unlike some people here today…_ ”

 

Jongin grinned sheepishly. “I totally was going to tell you about that, man.”

Chanyeol ignored him.

 

“ _Oh Sehun, we love you!_

_Oh Sehun, we love you!_

_Oh Sehun, we love you!_ ”

 

Sehun’s gaze was back at his legs when the final chord faded out into the yells of seniors playing soccer on the other side of the oval. Everyone stared at him in concern.

“That was the cheesiest fucking bullshit song I’ve ever had the misfortune to hear,” Sehun finally said, struggling to keep a straight face. No, he was not going to cry over this.

The next thing he knew, he was having the wind knocked out of him by Chanyeol flying across the circle and flattening him to the grass in a bear hug.

“Sehun, you’re dumb.”

Sehun squeezed his eyes shut, bringing his arms up to hug Chanyeol back. “I’m really sorry.”

Chanyeol squeezed him tighter. “Oh baby, did you really think I’d be mad?”

Well, yes, Sehun had thought that. But he said nothing, hiding his face in Chanyeol’s shoulder. He could hear the obnoxious shutter sound of Tao’s phone camera.

“Awwh, this one is totally going in the scrapbook,” Tao gushed. “Emotional make-up sequence. Beautiful.” He wiped away a tear.

“And who told you about… me and Yura?” Jongin demanded, scratching the back of his head. “Not even I knew until yesterday!”

Chanyeol stared at him in confusion. “She told me. Last year. When, you know, it happened?” he flicked his hair out of his face (over Sehun’s face — the younger boy spluttered indignantly) “You didn’t know I’m her brother?”

“It was just a one time thing!”

“Yeah, and whose fault was that?”

Jongin thought about the number he had never called, and had the grace to look abashed. “Ah, I knew there was something I forgot to do…”

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “You’re too young for her, anyway. Practically a baby.” He turned his attention back to Sehun. “Are you going to stop running away from me now?”

Sehun nodded. “Sorry, Chanyeol.”

“Oh, for crying out loud,” Chanyeol muttered, crushing Sehun’s ribs again.

Sehun groaned from lack of air and then grinned. “So does this mean you’re formally admitting that you like Baekhyun?”

 

 

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Luhan’s shit faced cackle reached his ears as he threw his arms around Sehun’s shoulders. “Sehun, Jongdae. Jongdae, Sehun. Officially, he’s dating Yixing, but we all know he’s desperately in love with me.”_
> 
> _Sehun felt a little out of his depth as he laughed nervously. Yixing pushed his hair out of his eyes and looked at him. “We’re just playing around, Sehun, don’t worry,” he reassured him, “You can make fun of me too. I know Jongdae loves me more than any of these assholes.”_
> 
> _“Devastatingly attractive assholes,” Kris corrected him, taking a sip from his water bottle._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

“OH SEHUN!” a voice carried across the crowd in the corridors as Sehun came out of his classroom. He turned around, just in time for his eyes to widen before a wild Luhan crashed into his frame. “ARE YOU AND CHANYEOLLIE GOOD YET?” he continued to yell into Sehun’s chest.

Sehun rested his hand lightly on Luhan’s back. “Uh, yes?”

“GOOD.” Luhan smiled prettily up at him and Sehun blinked.

“How did you even hear about that?”

Luhan wiggled his eyebrows. “Never underestimate the power of gossip, Sehun. Also we think your little group is adorable and it was really sad to see you guys go through a tough time—”

“So you guys were creeping on us.”

“—we were all rooting for you! Who needs dramas when there’s you, Zitao, Chanyeol, Kyungsoo and Jongin?”

“ _So_ creepy.”

“And that make-up hug! A true inspiration.”

Sehun narrowed his eyes. “Tao’s been keeping you all updated on everything that happens, hasn’t he.”

“ _Maybe_.”

Sehun sighed. “Well—”

“LUHAN! SEHUN!”

Kris came racing down the corridor with a gracelessness he usually didn't show in public, eyes wide, skidding to a halt in front of them.

Luhan whirled to face him, eyes stretching even wider. “What’s the matter?”

Kris gave Luhan’s arm a few quick, light whacks. “Oval. Quick. Jongdae’s back!”

He sprinted off again, pushing through a crowd that scrambled to let him pass, leaving Luhan and Sehun behind him with open mouths.

“What the fuck was that?”

“Sehun, we need to go.”

“Huh?”

Luhan seemed to snap out of whatever shock he was in, grabbing Sehun’s arm and digging his fingers in. “Let’s go! Jongdae’s back!”

“Who the fuck is Jongdae—?” Sehun yelped as Luhan took off, still holding his arm, dragging him along with him.

 

*

 

Jogging to keep up with Luhan, Kris having taken off far before them, Sehun started to discern their direction. Minseok and Yixing were standing in their regular spot on the oval beside a shorter boy with his hair gelled up and their rival school’s blazer hanging over his arm.

“ _Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen,_ ” Luhan shrieked, picking up speed as he sprinted away from Sehun to the other boy. “ _Catch meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee_!”

Sehun saw the rival school student’s eyes widen in terror as he dropped his blazer from his arms, bringing them up just in time to surround Luhan’s ribcage as he _leapt_ off his feet and sent them both crashing to the ground. Sehun, Minseok and Yixing all flinched in sympathetic pain at the dull thud of them hitting the grass. That looked like it _hurt._

“The fuck,” Sehun gasped, finally jogging up alongside Minseok.

Minseok, arms folded, glanced away from the writhing couple on the ground to look at Sehun. “This is Jongdae, our friend from middle school,” he explained, pausing speaking for a moment while Jongdae let out a loud, yet pitiful, moan of pain. “He—”

“ _Hey get off my boyfriend,_ ” Yixing yelled suddenly, and Sehun snapped his head around to see Luhan and the new boy in a passionate lip lock. Yixing grabbed the back of Luhan’s blazer with both hands and hauled him off, wrapping himself protectively around Jongdae while he and Luhan laughed uproariously. They didn’t even seem mad — even Yixing’s lips cracked into a cheeky little smile while he nuzzled into Jongdae’s neck.

“I’m confused,” Sehun whispered to Minseok.

Minseok just laughed. “Jongdae and Yixing have a closed-romantic-open-sexual relationship,” he explained in a tone that suggested he’d accepted the situation, but thought the whole thing was a little ridiculous, “And Luhan just likes to mess with them.”

“I think I’m still confused,” Sehun admitted with a chuckle while Jongdae pushed Yixing off and sat up, cleaning his glasses on his loosened tie.

“That’s okay,” Minseok nodded, sitting down beside where Luhan was still lying sprawled on the grass, snickering lightly at whatever Jongdae was saying to him in Chinese. “We met when Jongdae and my Chinese class had this weird assignment thing where we had to do a video with native speakers, and we teamed up with Luhan and Yixing, and well…” he raised his eyebrows at Jongdae nuzzling into the top of Yixing’s head, “One thing led to another, apparently, and here we are.”

Sehun pulled his head back, wrinkling his nose. “That doesn’t sound like a whole story to me,” he argued reproachfully.

“JONGDAE IS THE BEST EVER,” Luhan interjected loudly, sitting up, “That’s basically all you need to know.”

“ _Piss off, Luhan,_ ” Yixing snapped in Mandarin, a sentence Sehun actually understood, letting go of Jongdae’s waist for a second to flip Luhan off. Kris laughed, punching Luhan playfully in the arm.

Luhan turned to Sehun. “We all had mega crushes on Jongdae at the time, but alas—” he rammed his fist dramatically into his chest, “—he only had eyes for Yixing.”

“Aw, don’t be like that, Hannie,” Jongdae winked across the circle while Yixing whined into his chest, “You know I spared plenty of looks at you.”

“Rightfully so, too,” Luhan nodded sagely, sweeping his hair out of his face. “How could you not?”

“YOU’RE UGLY AS SHIT, LUHAN,” Yixing yelled with a pout, pulling Jongdae’s hand up to pet his hair.

“You know you want me too, unicorn!” Luhan retorted, sticking out his tongue.

“When Luhan says _all of us had a crush on Jongdae,_ ” Minseok started to explain, “He actually means—”

“Fuck _off_ , Baozi, we all know you caught Jongdae fever too,” Luhan snorted.

Jongdae blew a kiss, then smiled in Sehun’s direction. “Is anyone gonna introduce me to this new cutie pie, or what?”

Sehun felt heat creep up his cheeks, and felt his heart sink at the knowledge there was no way in hell Luhan would not notice. Sure enough, Luhan’s shit faced cackle reached his ears as he threw his arms around Sehun’s shoulders. “Sehun, Jongdae. Jongdae, Sehun. Officially, he’s dating Yixing, but we all know he’s desperately in love with me.”

Jongdae rolled his eyes. “Yixing is the light of my life, my one true love,” he declared, kissing him on the forehead, and Sehun found himself letting out an involuntary _aww_ at how happy Yixing looked at the statement.

“You will never meet more of a slut than our Jongdae,” Kris explained, “Ow,” he added, as Yixing’s foot shot out to kick him in the leg.

“Don’t call my boyfriend a slut,” he whined.

“I am though, it’s true,” Jongdae nodded, and Yixing pouted again. “I just love kissing, you know? So much fun.”

Sehun felt a little out of his depth as he laughed nervously. Yixing pushed his hair out of his eyes and looked at him. “We’re just playing around, Sehun, don’t worry,” he reassured him, “You can make fun of me too. I know Jongdae loves me more than any of these assholes.”

“Devastatingly attractive assholes,” Kris corrected him, taking a sip from his water bottle.

“Mm, that’s true as well,” Jongdae admitted in a sultry tone, looking Sehun right in the eyes. “And you’ve collected another stunning specimen, as well. How did that happen?”

“I _saved_ Sehun,” Luhan exclaimed, shaking Sehun by the shoulder. “I was his knight in shining armor, his fairytale prince, his—”

“Oh _enough_ ,” Kris wailed while Sehun pretended to gag.

“We just took him under our wings,” Minseok said calmly, “Sehun is a precious baby queer we need to protect at all costs.”

“That is _adorable_ ,” Jongdae moaned, fanning himself with his hand.

“Sehun, what do you think?” Kris asked, waving a hand in Jongdae’s general direction. “How’s his face? It’s nice, right?”

Sehun hummed, pursing his lips while Jongdae pouted and posed cockily. He did have a nice face, Sehun would have to admit. He had cheekbones that could cut a man, pretty bow lips, and frustratingly clear skin. He also had nice hands and good hair, and the air of someone who was used to people of all genders drooling over him as he passed them by.

“Yeah,” he agreed, nodding slowly. “Nice face.”

“I’ve got my eye on you, Sehun,” Yixing mumbled from the crook of Jongdae’s elbow. “You better watch your step. I haven’t seen this kid in months while he _abandoned_ me to _travel the world_ or some shit. I’m putting a dibs on him for at least a few days.”

Luhan snorted. “You don’t have to worry about Sehun messing with your man,” he scoffed, “He’s got his own—”

Sehun’s eyes went wide, but he was saved from Luhan’s devastating gossip by Minseok flinging himself over Sehun’s lap to tackle Luhan into silence. Jongdae raised his eyebrows in intrigue, but blessedly said nothing while Minseok scrunched up his face and shook his head slightly at Luhan. Sehun’s heart was pounding in his chest and Kris looked a little embarrassed, aiming his gaze at the grass.

Sehun couldn’t help but feel a little betrayed. How the hell did everyone know about this? Was nothing private anymore? Could he not just make his mistakes in peace? Why did Tao have to spill fucking _everything_ about his life?

“I should go to the library,” he sighed, clambering to his feet and shrugging his bag onto his shoulders. “Nice to meet you, Jongdae. See you guys later.”

“Sehun wait—” Minseok called out, but Sehun ignored him and kept walking.

 

*

 

“Luhan, you’re a fucking asshole,” Yixing said with reproach, extracting himself from Jongdae’s lap. “And I’m not playing this time. For real.”

Luhan pushed Minseok off him, looking distraught. “No, I didn’t mean to— I just— I was only teasing…”

Minseok rolled his eyes. “Come on, Luhan, you saw what happened with Chanyeol and them, Sehun already felt like total shit because of what happened.”

Luhan frowned, playing with his fingers. “I know,” he muttered at the ground.

“You know he’s only pretending to be okay so Chanyeol stops harassing him with happiness,” Kris continued on from Minseok, “You should learn when to just leave shit alone.”

“Fuck off,” Luhan mumbled, pulling at the grass.

“He seems like a sweetheart, Hannie,” Jongdae piped up, leaning back on his hands. “You should go after him.”

Luhan looked up and stared at him for a long moment. “Okay,” he whispered finally, picking himself up, dusting himself off, and marching away.

Yixing peered up at Jongdae for a moment before kissing him on the jaw. “You’re so caring,” he sighed adoringly.

Jongdae smiled back as Kris pouted, looking vaguely jealous. “That’s what you love me for.”

 

*

 

Sehun marched through the school, pulling out his phone to call Tao. He was so _angry_.

“Hello? Sehunnie?”

“Where are you.”

“Um, I’m with Chanyeol in the quad, why?”

Sehun hung up without replying, his face twisting into a half-sneer of humiliation. The seniors had no _business_ knowing about this! No one did! Tao had no business telling them! Luhan especially didn’t have to go blurting shit out in front of a complete stranger, no matter how straightforward and candid that stranger happened to be!

He stormed out into the quadrangle, immediately spying Chanyeol and Tao on a bench under a tree close by.

“Sehun, are you alright—?”

“ _How_ could you tell Luhan about Baekhyun?” Sehun yelled into Tao’s face, hands balling by his sides. “That’s _none_ of his _business!_ It’s none of _your_ business! What the fuck was going through your head when you spill that kind of shit?”

Tao stared back, eyes wide. Sehun was shaking, fists and lips trembling, knees weak. He lowered his voice slightly so as to not broadcast his shame across the entire quadrangle. “It’s enough that people call me a faggot slut wherever I go, do you know how it feels to actually be one? Did you ever _think_ about that?”

“Sehun, I—”

“ _Fuck_ you guys. Isn’t it bad enough I did it in the first place? Why does everyone have to know about it? Why can’t I just work through my mistakes in private?” he could feel angry tears welling in his eyes and he cursed them, his temper only rising. “It’s not _fair._ This should have just been between us! Not even you! Just me and Baekhyun! Chanyeol’s not even officially dating him, it’s technically not even _his_ business! What the _fuck!_ ”

“Sehun,” Tao whimpered.

“No, you know what? Fuck it. I don't even want to talk to you right now.”

“Sehun,” Chanyeol interjected quietly, reaching out to grab Sehun’s arm as he turned away. “Sehun,” he repeated more forcefully.

“ _What_?” Sehun snapped.

“Sehun, Tao didn’t tell Luhan about you and Baekhyun.”

Sehun felt the fury drain out of his whole body, leaving behind a kind of exhausted tingling. “What?” he repeated, pathetically.

“Baekhyun did.”

Sehun couldn’t feel his knees. “Baekhyun…?”

“Sehunnie, I never would do that,” Tao pleaded, voice trembling. “I only told Luhan you and Chanyeol were arguing because he was worried about you, we were all worried about you, but I’d never gossip about something like that, I swear, I wouldn’t…”

Chanyeol gently pushed Sehun down onto the bench beside Tao. “We’re sorry, Sehun. It fucking sucks that it got out.”

Sehun furiously swiped at his leaking eyes. “Sorry,” he mumbled at Tao.

Tao sniffled, wrapping tentative arms around Sehun’s shoulders. “I promise I didn’t tell,” he sobbed softly. Sehun just nodded, bringing his arms up to grasp at Tao’s elbow.

“Sehunnie, your phone is buzzing,” Chanyeol pointed out quietly.

Sehun shook his head. “Don’t worry about it.”

 

*

 

“You’re back already?” Jongdae asked in surprise as Luhan stalked back to the group.

“I can’t find him, and he’s not picking up his phone,” Luhan whined, dumping himself in the grass and flopping onto his back. “I feel terrible. How much of an ass am I?”

“100%, give or take,” Kris deadpanned.

Luhan pouted. “It was only a slip of the tongue,” he sighed, “I didn’t mean to upset him.”

“Am I allowed to know what’s going on?” Jongdae asked tentatively.

The other four hesitated.

“Well…” Kris began slowly.

“It’s kind of…” Yixing continued.

“No,” Minseok said flatly. “Something happened between Sehun and a few of his friends, and they’re still sorting it out. That’s all you need to know. It’s none of our business.”

Jongdae nodded in acceptance. “That’s okay. Poor thing, though. He really is precious. So cute.”

“Jongdae,” Yixing whined.

“Sorry, love,” Jongdae murmured back, pecking his forehead.

Minseok hummed. “He’s sensitive, that’s for sure. He cares about his friends a lot. And he has a lot of guilt.”

“Solid tsundere type,” Kris sums up.

“Oh my _god_ ,” Luhan groans. “He is not.”

“He is — he deals with his guilt by getting all mad and sulky about it.”

“That’s not what tsundere means you fake weeb.”

“It is so.”

“It is not, it’s someone who deals with _crushes_ by being _mean_ ; you can’t just replace those things with any positive and negative emotion whenever you feel like it.”

“Watch me, bitch.” Kris threw grass onto Luhan’s stomach.

“Oh go fuck yourself.”

Minseok rolled his eyes and turned back to Jongdae. “We all, clearly, care about Sehun very much.”

Jongdae laughed. “Actually, though,” Yixing protested. “We do. I hope he’s alright.”

 

*

 

Sehun sat on the bus home, leaning back onto Jongin’s shoulder, feeling thoroughly sorry for himself. He hadn’t had a chance to find Baekhyun that day, and even if he had, he still had no idea what he would have said. His anger had faded to a deep-seated feeling of helplessness and embarrassment, and he just wanted to disappear. Jongin rubbed his arm comfortingly, he and Kyungsoo having been caught up by Chanyeol. Tao still seemed withdrawn, and Sehun really wished he hadn’t yelled. Even wallowing in self pity, he realized that had been wrong.

What was he going to do?

Almost in a daze, he waved goodbye to the others and walked to the subway with Jongin. Jongin took him back under his arm after they passed the ticket gate, looking worried. They stood in silence waiting for the train, and boarded in silence, and rode in silence. Jongin hummed quietly as they approached his stop, not really wanting to leave Sehun alone with his thoughts.

“Do you want to come to mine for a bit?” he offered hesitantly, “We can just chill out for a bit before you have to go home.”

Sehun slowly turned his head up to look at him through glazed eyes. “Huh?”

Jongin smiled slightly. “Come on, idiot. I’m not leaving you on the train to miss your stop and get lost.”

“Um,” Sehun said softly as Jongin pulled him to his feet and helped him off the train. “Okay.”

“Great.”

 

*

 

“I’ll be right back,” Jongin announced, leaving Sehun to wallow on his bed in his misery. Sehun just grunted in response, staring at the ceiling until he was unceremoniously interrupted by Jongin dumping something sharp on his belly.

“The f—” he broke off into a splutter as the fluffy dog Jongin had thrown onto him began furiously licking his face. “EW, GROSS, OH— oh, hello.” He sat up and grabbed the overexcited dog, who squirmed desperately in his grasp, skitching at his legs with its claws. “Ow, ouch, oh, okay, hi,” he stammered, petting its head, an inadvertent smile crossing his face. “Oh, you are adorable, yes you are, hello, hello! Hello! Oh, you are precious…”

“This is Monggu,” Jongin said happily, reaching over to scratch the dog behind its ears. “I thought he could cheer you up.”

“Yes he can,” Sehun cooed, pushing his lips forward and shaking the dog’s head. “Oh my god, he is so fucking cute.”

Jongin beamed. “I just got him the other day, but he’s my baby. I hope you get along.”

Sehun smiled and looked over at Jongin, feeling better already. “Thanks, Jongin.”

“Hey, no worries, man. I was worried about you, you know.” He climbed onto the bed next to his friend, massaging his fingers into Sehun’s hair in an imitation of Sehun petting his dog. Sehun pouted, but didn’t stop him. “Are you okay?”

Sehun shrugged, shifting slightly to keep the dog from trampling his balls.

“Baekhyun kind of fucked you over, man, that’s not cool.” Jongin remarked.

Sehun snorted. “What can you do. It was my own fault for being such a whore.”

“It’s not your fault, and you’re not a whore,” Jongin argued, “You trusted someone and they betrayed that trust. That’s not fair.”

Sehun shrugged. “Still wouldn’t have happened if I’d just kept it in my pants.”

Jongin sighed. “Sehun, listen to me.” He jogged Sehun’s shoulder. “Are you listening to me? Good. You are not a bad person. Having sex doesn’t make you a bad person. Being gay doesn’t make you a bad person. Having sex with a single person who consents does not make you a bad person, no matter what your relationship with Chanyeol is. It’s not your fault Baekhyun is stringing Chanyeol along, okay? Trusting someone doesn’t make you a bad person. None of this is your fault. I promise.”

“Don’t be naïve,” Sehun grumbled. “No one is faultless.”

“I’m not saying you don’t have faults. I’m saying this situation is entirely on Baekhyun. You didn’t bring this on yourself. He did.”

“I said yes. I went home with him. I didn’t stop him when we were having sex. I didn’t even tell Chanyeol myself. He did.”

“And what does that say about how much respect he has for you? Or Chanyeol, for that matter? He’s just trying to start shit, Sehun. He’s probably one of those assholes who gets off on drama. And for sure you should be mad about that, but not at yourself. It’s not on you. All you did was trust somebody.”

Sehun laughed at that, a cold, bitter sound that hurt even his own ears. “I didn’t even trust him though? I don’t even like him. I thought he liked me.”

“He wanted you to think that,” Jongin stated confidently. “Because he wanted to fuck you.”

“Why me though? Why would he want to fuck me? I barely know him, and Chanyeol follows him everywhere. Oh!” he snapped his fingers sarcastically, answering his own question, “Because even though Chanyeol is completely and utterly obsessed with him, I was still easier.”

Jongin dragged a hand down his face and sighed. “Sehun, you gotta stop beating yourself up about this.”

“Ha — do I though?” Sehun simpered, scratching Monggu under the chin.

“Yeah,” Jongin said softly. “You’re only hurting yourself.”

“So what?”

“Sehun…”

Sehun sighed, relenting a little and turning his head to look at Jongin. “Things are going to suck after this, alright? If I really am a worthless slut, it’s going to hurt less when everyone else says so at school tomorrow.”

Jongin set his jaw. “They won’t. Really,” he added at Sehun’s disbelieving grunt. “I won’t let them.” He held up a fist in front of Sehun’s face. “I’ll bash up anyone who talks shit about you.”

Sehun was silent for a long time, taking a few minutes to rub Monggu’s belly. “Jongin,” he whispered eventually.

“Yeah?”

“Can you stop being so nice to me?”

Jongin paused. “Huh?”

“Just… stop.”

“What are you talking about? I’m not allowed to take care of my best friend?”

“You’re making me confused. I don’t belong to you.”

“I didn’t say you belong to me. I just know people treat you like shit and I’m not going to stand by while they do.”

Sehun’s lip curled, his hands beginning to shake. He was already feeling self destructive — why not take it a step further? Why not just blow up his whole life and destroy his most important relationships while he was at it? He’d already fucked up his friendship with Tao, and probably Chanyeol too, anyway.

“You know why I slept with Baekhyun?”

Jongin’s fingers stilled for a second on his scalp. “Why?” he asked carefully.

“Because you don’t love me.”

Jongin’s fingers stopped petting and slowly lowered from his head to his shoulder. “What are you talking about?”

Sehun chuckled, losing his nerve. “Never mind.”

Jongin could feel him trembling beneath his palm. “Sehun, I do love you.”

“You know what I mean.”

Jongin fell silent. Yes, he did know. He sucked in his lips silently, trying to think of a response.

“It doesn’t matter, though,” Sehun continued dryly. “I know you never will.”

“I want you in my life.”

“Me too, dude. I thought being your friend would be enough. But apparently I’m still infatuated with you, because the thought of you makes me do stupid fucking things like sleeping with guys I don’t know.”

Jongin still didn’t know what to say.

A few beats of silence passed before Sehun shrugged Jongin off his shoulders. “I should go.”

“Sehun,” Jongin started, but didn’t have anything to follow while Sehun gathered his jacket and bag. He began to leave without another word, and Jongin got to his feet shakily, an irrational fear that Sehun was about to do something dangerous blocking all thought from his mind. He took a couple of steps forward and grabbed Sehun’s arm, a single, stupid thought that this was kind of like a drama crossing his mind. Time seemed to slow down, but his brain still didn’t have a plan by the time Sehun turned to look at him. He pulled on Sehun’s elbow, bringing him stumbling closer, then brought his other arm around to the back of his head and kissed him.

Right on the lips.

Sehun’s brain was screaming. He relented for one second, allowing himself to enjoy the smell of Jongin’s face cream and the softness of his lips, the comforting security of his hand on the back of his head, before ignoring the desperate protests of his heart and pushing him away.

“Do not,” he croaked.

Jongin was bright red and confused. He covered his eyes with a hand and took a shaky breath. “Yeah. I’m sorry. That was dumb, that was so dumb, I’m sorry.”

Sehun extracted himself and adjusted his bag. “I’m going home.”

“Don’t do anything stupid.” Jongin blurted out, looking utterly miserable.

Sehun felt empty. His heart wasn’t even pounding anymore. He didn’t feel sad, or confused, or regretful, or angry, or… anything, really. Just kind of numb. “No,” he agreed, opening Jongin’s bedroom door. “I think my stupid quota’s been filled for today.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's Jongdae!!  
> Okay so up to this point all of the chapters were written in like, 2013, 2014. From the next chapter, it's all content I began writing late last year! So hopefully you can notice it gets A Bit Better hahahahaha.   
> Also the next chapter is one of my favourites so please look forward to it! That'll be out on Wednesday (AEST) :) <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Luhan scoffed. “Sehun, do you think I’m cool?”_
> 
>  
> 
> _“Uh…” Sehun hesitated, and Jongdae and Yixing started cackling._
> 
>  
> 
> _“Good answer!” Jongdae chortled while Yixing just slapped his leg._
> 
>  
> 
> _“Luhan’s cool,” Sehun protested, and Luhan just shook his head sadly._
> 
>  
> 
> _“Don’t feel sorry for me, Sehun. You’ve done enough damage,” he closed his eyes dramatically._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: M  
> Warnings for underage drinking

 

 

 

Sehun caught the late train the next day. Jongin called him a couple of times, and Luhan had called him the night before, but he hadn’t replied to any of them. He went about his day by himself, feeling vaguely restless, until lunchtime — when he realized he had nobody to sit with. The cafeteria was the absolute worst place to go, probably the most clique-y area of the entire campus, but if he went to the quad or the oval, he was sure to run into someone he knew. After wandering the halls aimlessly for a while, he decided to wander down to the computer lab, which at this time of day was usually full of geeks playing StarCraft.

He settled down at a desk and drew his lunch box out of his pocket, pulling up an episode of a drama on the monitor before he realized that in the relative silence of the lab, the incessant buzzing of his phone could not be ignored. The other students were glaring at him. He did not want to be on the receiving end of a gamer’s wrath.

He picked up the phone.

“Yeah, Luhan.”

“Sehun, where are you? We’ve been looking everywhere!”

“I’m in the lab.”

“In the science block?”

“The computer lab.”

“We have a computer lab?”

Sehun sighed to himself as he heard Kris’ muffled reply: “Yeah, it’s downstairs in the math block.”

“Okay we’ll be there in one minute! Stay there okay!”

“Okay.”

“Promise!”

“I promise.”

“Okay!”

Sehun sighed and put his phone down on the table, flicking through increasingly frantic messages from Chanyeol, Luhan and Yixing. He felt a little guilty, but they were probably better off without him today. He should practice what he preached and keep his own drama out of their lives, if he didn’t want them poking about his business.

Luhan grabbed him by the shoulders from behind and he let out a small screech, drawing a roomful of furious glares. Luhan smiled at him and sat on the desk, Kris, Minseok and Yixing pulling up the surrounding wheelie chairs. Minseok started spinning absently, pulling his legs off the ground.

“Hey,” Luhan whispered.

“Hey.”

“Everyone’s really worried about you,” Kris said, leaning forward on his knees while he munched on a sandwich. “You should reply Chanyeol back. He’s freaking out.”

Sehun sighed. “Why?”

“No one’s heard anything from you all day, and Jongin said you didn’t catch the train,” Yixing pointed out reproachfully. “They even tried calling your house and your mom’s phone, but nobody picked up. We thought you might be sick, or skipping, or dead or something.”

“Sorry to make you worry,” Sehun mumbled. “I didn’t want to bother anyone today.”

“You could’ve at least told us you were alive,” Luhan sighed. “We were looking for you all morning. Chanyeol almost went to your house to check on you, but the teacher caught him trying to sneak out and gave him detention.”

“Sorry.”

“We didn’t tell him where you were, but we let them know we found you,” Kris said, and Sehun felt grateful that not everybody was about to descend upon him. He just wanted to eat his lunch and feel sorry for himself.

“Hey,” Luhan began awkwardly, and Sehun turned to look up at him. “I’m sorry about yesterday. I didn’t mean to upset you, but that was shitty of me. You know I’m awful when it comes to gossip, but I crossed a line.”

“That’s okay,” Sehun sighed. “I overreacted.”

“For what its worth, we’re launching a group-wide boycott of Baekhyun,” Luhan added. “We’re not so much into people who kiss and tell without consent. With consent is a different matter,” he wiggled his eyebrows at Yixing, “But yeah, Baekhyun’s an ass. Have you spoken to him about it?”

“No,” Sehun admitted, flopping back in his chair. “I don’t know what I’d say.”

“Give him an earful,” Yixing suggested. “Or do you want one of us to talk to him?”

“Yeah,” Minseok agreed, stopping spinning for a moment. “We were serious when we met you, you know. If anyone bothers you, you can tell us. We’ll help you out.”

“No, that’s okay,” Sehun denied frantically, waving his hands. “There’s really no need to bother him.”

Yixing hummed in dissatisfaction. “Well, if you change your mind…”

“No, no… really…”

Luhan sighed. “Well, changing the subject,” he sat up a little straighter. “You don’t work part time or anything do you?”

“Um… no, why?” Sehun frowned slightly.

“Are you free after school, then? We’re having games night tonight. You should join us.”

“Games night?”

“Board games,” Minseok clarified. “We do it every now and then when we don’t have too much homework. We just chill out, play a few games, have some beer, then usually pass out and have breakfast together on Saturday.”

“Wow,” Sehun raised his eyebrows. “That… sounds amazing, actually. I’d love to, if that’s okay.”

“Of course it’s okay,” Yixing scoffed. “We wouldn’t invite you otherwise, dummy.”

Sehun offered a small smile. “Thanks, guys.”

Kris laid a hand on his shoulder. “We want you to feel comfortable with us, Sehun. I know our sense of humour and banter is kind of crude, but we really don’t judge. Your life is your life, and we’re your friends. We want you to be able to share or withhold whatever you want with us.”

The other three were nodding as Sehun glanced around at all of them.

“We just accepted what Baekhyun told us because we’re used to sharing everything with each other,” Minseok elaborated, “But that’s our bad. We’ll check our sources from now on. You can trust us, okay?”

Sehun started to feel a little choked up, sinking back in his chair and dropping his head. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“Oh no, Sehun, don’t cry!” Luhan yelped, flinging himself around the younger student.

“Who’s crying?” Sehun sniffled, bringing his arms up to hug Luhan back. “Fuck off.”

“That's the spirit,” Yixing patted him on the back.

They fell silent for a while, eating their lunches.

“We’ve got to leave soon,” Yixing mumbled eventually, “Luhan’s got too many absences and we need to make sure he goes to class.”

“Fuck off,” Luhan whined. “Look who’s talking, anyway, your boyfriend skips school all the time to come visit you.”

Kris snorted. “Jongdae doesn’t even need to go to class at _that_ school. He’s got enough money to graduate with whatever grade he wants.”

“Hey, don’t slander my boyfriend’s morality,” Yixing complained, poking Kris with his chopstick. “He does well at school.”

“Yeah, I wonder why,” Kris rolled his eyes.

“Because he studies!” Yixing whined, poking harder. “He works really hard!”

“Sure, sure,” Kris put his hand in the way of the chopstick. “I admit it, stop abusing me.”

Yixing huffed, tipping the last of his rice into his mouth from the corner of the container. “Okay, let’s go, Lulu.”

“You’ll never take me alive!” Luhan yelled, diving under the desk and clinging to the leg for dear life.

“My god, are you even nineteen?”

“No, I’m four, piss off.”

“I think there’s a programming class or something in here after this,” Sehun noted dryly. “But you can stay for that if you want.”

“No!” Luhan gasped. “Then I’ll be a nerd!

“Your choice, buddy,” Minseok shrugged. “You’re going to suffer a class no matter what.”

Luhan wailed dramatically as Kris hauled him out from under the table. “Come on, bitch, let’s go.”

 

*

 

Tao was waiting by his locker when Sehun headed there after his last class. His steps slowed as he approached, guilt from both yesterday’s confrontation and today’s avoidance clawing at his insides. Tao looked tired and sad, scuffing his feet on the floor while he leaned against the metal structure.

Sehun considered leaving, but all of his stuff was in there, including his weekend homework. So he got his shit together, took a breath, and walked up to his friend.

“Hi,” he said hesitantly, and Tao looked up blankly.

“Hi,” he said back, straightening to let Sehun access the door. “We missed you today.”

“I’m sorry, Tao.”

Tao swallowed. “No, I’m sorry.”

Sehun turned to look at him. “Huh?”

Tao gazed down at his hands. “About yesterday. I realized I haven’t been a good friend to you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Well…” he hesitated, thinking of the words he’d prepared. “Yesterday, you seemed really sure it was me who told, and I thought why? Would you think it was me?” he took a breath. “And I realized it must be because, right, you don’t really trust me…” he powered on through Sehun’s jaw falling open. “So I’m really sorry, Sehun, that I haven’t been a good friend to you, I haven’t been someone you can trust, someone you can tell things to, someone who’s got your back…”

“Tao, no—”

“I’m going to work really hard from now on to be someone you can rely on, so if you can forgive me, please give me another chance,” Tao finished, voice trembling.

“No, no, it’s not that at all!” Sehun protested desperately, mind whirling that Tao could possibly blame this on himself. This whole thing came about from Sehun’s own stupid mistake, for crying out loud. “Tao, I never thought you were trying to hurt me or anything. Luhan just said that you’d been keeping him updated on the thing with Chanyeol, so I thought you just… you know… told him everything, it was my fault completely, and I overreacted. I never should’ve— oh, Tao, no,” he sighed and pulled his friend into a tight hug as Tao’s face crumpled and he bowed his head further. “Tao, don’t cry. I never should’ve yelled at you. I’m so sorry.”

“You didn’t message us all day,” Tao sobbed, “I thought you were really mad at me,”

“I’m not mad at you at all,” Sehun denied, rubbing Tao’s back. “I’m not. I thought you’d be mad at me for being an asshole.”

“You are an asshole,” Tao cried, hugging him tighter. “Don’t run away again.”

“Okay,” Sehun agreed, “I’m sorry, Tao. Now stop crying, it’s bad for your skin.”

“What the fuck do you know about taking care of your skin,” Tao grumbled back through his sniffles.

 

*

 

“What do you drink, Sehun?” Jongdae asked, opening up a fridge that had a damn ice dispenser on the front, for crying out loud. Sehun almost wished that he’d brought Chanyeol along just so he didn’t feel like the least cultured person in the room.

“Well, lemonade, usually,” he admitted, eyes running over the stack of six-packs in the fridge, “I am eighteen.”

Jongdae snorted. “Live a little,” he urged, tearing a vodka cruiser out of its cardboard packet. “We’ll start you on this, then.” He grabbed a beer for himself, and Sehun almost jumped out of his skin as Jongdae suddenly screamed across the house, “Babe? What do you want?”

“Cider!” Luhan shouted back.

“Not you, cocksucker!” Jongdae hollered. “Yixing? What do you want?”

“Beer, please,” Yixing called, almost drowned out by Luhan whining.

“Cheen, you’re already at the friiiidge, just bring me my ciderrrr!”

“Fuck off!” Jongdae yelled back, pulling just another beer out of the fridge.

“I’ll take the cider,” Sehun offered, stretching out his hand.

Jongdae laughed. “You’re too good to him, sweetheart,” he snorted, but let Sehun take the cider for Luhan. Jongdae had a very pretty mouth, and a very pretty laugh. Sehun could understand why the rest of them loved him.

“You can admire my face if you want to,” Jongdae fluttered his eyelashes, and Sehun flushed bright red. “I know it’s hard to look away.” He laughed again, and headed back out of the enormous kitchen to the even larger foyer on the way to the obscenely extravagant rec room. Sehun followed him, a cold drink in each hand, wishing he had that kind of confidence. Although he supposed a good amount of it would come from being blessed with a face like that. He followed Jongdae up his ornate banister-clad stairway, through the gentle hum of central heating, Jongdae’s name-brand sweats flapping against the carpet of the steps, into the room where Luhan and Yixing were lounging on leather sofas four times their size around a glass-top coffee table. He didn’t think he’d even known high-schoolers could possibly have this much money. He was almost reluctant to sit down, like his clothes were too old and dirty for the upholstery.

Jongdae, naturally, had no such concerns, placing the cans down on the table and flopping heedlessly down on one of the sofas next to Yixing. Sehun wandered around to Luhan’s side and handed him the cider.

“Oh, Sehun!” Luhan cooed, sounding touched. “You are the best!”

“I am,” Sehun agreed, sitting down on the couch carefully and unscrewing the bottle, holding it a little way from his body to stop it from dripping.

Luhan laughed loudly, cracking his can with one hand. Yixing groaned. “Luhan, will you ever learn that that doesn’t make you look cool.”

Luhan scoffed. “Let’s ask our resident junior, shall we? Sehun, do you think I’m cool?”

“Uh…” Sehun hesitated, and Jongdae and Yixing started cackling.

“Good answer!” Jongdae chortled while Yixing just slapped his leg.

“Luhan’s cool,” Sehun protested, and Luhan just shook his head sadly.

“Don’t feel sorry for me, Sehun. You’ve done enough damage,” he closed his eyes dramatically, suddenly flying off the couch as the doorbell went off. “MINSEOK IS HERE,” he screeched, running from the room to answer the door.

Sehun listened to his heavy footsteps thudding down the stairs. Jongdae snickered around the lip of his can, rubbing Yixing’s shoulder. “Way too good to him.”

Sehun could hear the voices of Minseok and Kris echoing in the entrance hall, then fade off into the kitchen. “I’m just a nice person,” he boasted in response to Jongdae’s comment.

Yixing nodded. “Yeah, you are,” he agreed.

Sehun’s eyes widened and he flapped his hand desperately. “No, no, that was a joke,” he replied quickly. “I’m terrible.”

Jongdae let out a skeptical snort. “There’s no way that’s true,” he disagreed, “Yixing wouldn’t like you if you were terrible.”

Sehun blushed, taking a sip of his drink. The other three arrived, carting the whole case of beer from the fridge.

“Helping yourself to my shit, I see,” Jongdae remarked dryly.

“Shut up, Jongdae, what is this — like point-zero-zero-zero-zero-zero-one percent of your net worth?”

“Fuck off, Yifan, you’re rich too!”

“I stay humble,” Kris shrugged, seating himself on the remaining empty couch while his friends let out various groans of disagreement.

“Anyway, what do you guys want to play?” Jongdae extracted himself from Yixing and sat forward to place his drink on the table. “We should explain rules to Sehun before we get too drunk.” He turned and stage-whispered to Sehun, “None of them can hold their alcohol.”

“Better than you,” Minseok scoffed.

Yixing laughed. “It’s true, Minseok’s the least lightweight,” he agreed.

“I want to see what Sehun is like drunk,” Luhan announced, ruffling the younger boy’s hair. Sehun shrugged him off roughly. “I bet you go all pink and lose your motor control.”

“Luhan that’s you.”

“Shut up!”

“Hey, oh, I have a game,” Sehun piped up, and the others turned to look at him curiously. “It’s called… introduce yourselves to Oh Sehun.”

“I’m intrigued.” Jongdae raised an eyebrow. “How do you play?”

“Okay, um,” Sehun nodded to himself. “If Minseok is the most heavyweight, who’s the most lightweight?”

“Luhan,” came back the chorused reply. Luhan just pouted in defeat. Sehun laughed.

“And, uh, who changes the most when they’re drunk?”

The others hummed for a second before, at Luhan’s prompting, agreeing on Kris.

“I mean Luhan goes bat shit crazy,” Yixing pointed out, “But that’s not too different from usual. Yifan changes the most.”

“In what way?” Sehun asked interestedly.

“He gets super chatty,” Minseok explained, “And he likes to dance a lot. And sing. And beatbox. And talk about politics and societal issues and stuff. It’s _hilarious._ ”

Kris just shrugged in acceptance. “What’s true is true.”

“Okay, okay, okay.” Sehun clapped, starting to enjoy himself. “Who… is the sleepy drunk?”

“Yixing,” Luhan and Kris chorused, while Yixing ducked his head and raised his hand, and Jongdae just pointed at him with his thumb.

“And who’s the horny drunk?”

The older boys ‘oooooh’ed in unison, laughing while Sehun blushed.

“Um… I say Luhan,” Jongdae announced finally.

“No way. It’s you,” Yixing argued.

“I think it’s Minseok,” Kris chimed in.

“I also think it’s Jongdae,” Luhan offered.

“No, I agree it’s Luhan,” Minseok nodded.

“Contention in the ranks,” Sehun commented. “So what other kinds of drunk do you get?”

“Oh! Oh! This is my favourite game,” Yixing sat up straight. “Okay, are you ready for this? I have spent a lot of time analyzing these idiots’ drunk pattern.”

“I am prepared. Lay it on me,” Sehun laughed.

“Okay! So, Luhan starts off really red, then really happy. Then he gets really needy, and hugs and kisses _everybody_ , then he gets really frustrated and starts flipping the game pieces unless he’s winning, in which case he’s just an enormous arrogant asshole. Then he gets really needy and _sad_ and clings to you until he passes out.”

“I can attest, this is all factual,” Jongdae raised his hand.

Luhan flipped him off. “Shut up, you wait until he gets to you.”

Yixing nodded. “Jongdae doesn’t notice he’s drunk until he goes to pee. He just kind of sits there trying to keep his body under control and laughs really loudly at _really_ stupid things, and kind of twists himself into all sorts of pretzels trying to be comfortable, like sprawling on the floor, or putting one leg up on the back of the couch, shit like that. And he gets really loose-tongued and slurs a lot of his words.”

Jongdae hid his face in his hands while they laughed at him. “Okay, okay, do Yifan now,” he moaned.

“We already did Yifan earlier. Dancing, singing, politics.”

“What about Minseok, then?”

“ _Oh_ ,” Yixing snorted. “Minseok turns into a damn baby when he drinks. He’s supposed to be the oldest but he does like all these stupid cute actions and whines at people to help him sit up and get him drinks and kiss him and shit like that. Confirmed pillow princess in bed.”

Sehun snickered while Minseok sighed. “Like you’d know what I’m like in bed,” he scoffed.

“Pillow princess. Confirmed.”

“Alright, so who’s going to tell me what Yixing’s like drunk?”

“ME! ME! PICK ME!” Luhan screeched, flinging his hand above his head.

“Luhan, go!”

“Yixing becomes the ultimate stoner,” Luhan said with glee, “He starts talking all sorts of shit about the universe and life and other planes of existence, he usually forgets how to say words, even in Chinese, he just loses his _mind_. Then he falls asleep.”

“Amazing.”

“So I think the point of this game is,” Luhan continued, “We need to keep a super close eye on Sehun tonight and see what he does when he’s drunk.”

“No, hold on—”

“YOU BROUGHT THIS UPON YOURSELF, HUNNIE,” Luhan announced. “If you’re gonna be a part of games night, you be a part of the banter. That’s how this works.”

Sehun sighed, hanging his head. “I accept the terms of this agreement.”

“EXCELLENT. Let’s play a game.”

 

*

 

Sehun started to feel extremely sleepy at about 2am, when Jongdae’s playlist started to get softer and dreamier, pumped through the surround sound system. Yixing had already fallen asleep on Jongdae’s lap, his face buried in his boyfriend’s stomach, the couch throw draped over his lower body. The coffee table was littered with empty cans, bottles, cards, game pieces and random tissues. Jongdae, Kris and Minseok were playing some kind of card game, Kris massaging the thighs Minseok had draped over his lap with one hand. Sehun had his arm over Luhan, who was snuggling into his side, drunkenly humming against his ribcage. Sehun hadn’t had that much to drink, just enough for very tipsy to fade into happily buzzed. It had definitely helped that he had barely had the chance to shot any of that absinthe in ‘never have I ever’, while Jongdae was lined up to have the bottle poured directly into his mouth and Yixing’s face displayed his fading faith in humanity.

But snuggling up to Luhan was nice, and Sehun played with a lock of his hair around his finger as he watched his friends struggle to spit out the words they were trying to say. They had melted into mostly Mandarin for the hour or so Yixing had been the most drunk, but now that he was unconscious, they had reverted back to Korean. Sehun wondered if he should perhaps pick up Chinese as his elective.

“Luhan, will you teach me Chinese?”

Luhan paused humming. He looked up at Sehun through hooded, glazed eyes. “Of course,” he agreed happily. “Sehun, you are so cute.”

“I’m not cute,” Sehun murmured, “You’re the cute one.”

“I’m not cute.” Luhan shook his head. “I’m the manly one.”

“Whatever you say,” Sehun hummed back, pulling Luhan a little closer and shifting to let some blood into his tingling arm.

“I say you’ve become far too bold,” Luhan mumbled, closing his eyes. “You used to be so shy. What happened?”

“You made me drink,” Sehun pointed out. “I’m not a polite kid, you know. I just have anxiety.”

“What are you two lovers whispering about?” Jongdae called over, without looking away from the game.

“Why? Are you jealous?” Luhan shot back, but he was smiling.

“You’re really underestimating our relationship if you think I’m jealous of your little crush,” Jongdae retorted, patting Yixing’s shoulder.

Luhan whined. “Am I Luhan’s crush now?” Sehun laughed.

Luhan pouted. “Ignore them, Sehunnie.”

“Okay.”

“I fold,” Kris threw his cards down. “And I need to pee.” He jiggled his legs and Minseok groaned as he withdrew his own reluctantly. Kris stood up, pausing at the side of the couch to give Jongdae a long kiss before he stumbled out in the direction of the closest bathroom.

Minseok leaned his head on his hand, propping it up on the arm of the sofa. “Jongdae…”

“Yeah?”

“What would you do if Yixing stopped letting you do that with us?”

“What, kissing?”

“Yeah.”

Sehun shifted slightly, also curious for the answer.

“I’d leave him,” Jongdae said, carefully but without hesitation. “Because that wouldn’t be the Yixing I fell in love with.”

“You love him because he lets you mess around with other people?”

“I love him because we respect each other, we understand each other’s needs, we communicate well, and we’re important to one another,” Jongdae explained, suddenly far more articulate than he had been during the game. “I understand he’ll never want to have sex with me, and he understands that I don’t see sex and love as connected. He’s always first in my mind, and if I ‘mess around’ with anyone else, that doesn’t mean I love them, or that I don’t love him, or that I want things of him that he can’t give me.”

Minseok hummed thoughtfully, scratching his face. Jongdae looked a little upset.

“There’s a simple solution if it makes you uncomfortable,” Jongdae concluded, “Just don’t kiss me.”

“Can _I_ kiss you?” Sehun asked.

Jongdae smiled. “If you want. Come here, though, I have a Yixing.” He indicated Yixing sleeping on his lap.

“I have a Luhan,” Sehun countered, indicating the Luhan clinging to his side.

“And I’m not letting go,” Luhan nodded. “I’m comfortable.”

“Suit yourself.” Jongdae blew a kiss across the coffee table. “There you go.”

Sehun caught it out of the air and put it down his shirt. “I’ll save it for later.”

Jongdae and Minseok laughed. Minseok seemed satisfied with Jongdae’s answer to his question.

Kris returned, leaning against the doorframe. “Who wants to come for a smoke with me?”

Luhan broke away from Sehun immediately, apparently forgetting his previous assertion to stay exactly where he was. “I have been waiting _all night_ for you to ask that,” he gasped, falling to the side to reach his bag on the floor. “Let’s fucking go.”

“Minseok?”

“Yeah, alright.” Minseok pushed himself off the couch. “I’m down.”

“I guess I’ll go too, then,” Jongdae sighed, grabbing a pillow to replace his hip under Yixing’s head. “Sehun, do you smoke?”

“No, but I’ll come out,” Sehun replied, twisting his arm to wake it up. “If I stay here with just Yixing I’ll probably fall asleep too.”

“Fair enough.” Jongdae twisted his body to manoeuvre out from under Yixing, slipping the pillow deftly into place. The four of them stood up, stretching out their muscles, then Luhan and Kris wandered out onto the landing, murmuring to each other in Mandarin.

“Want that kiss now?” Jongdae offered with a smile.

Sehun patted his shirt pocket. “I already have one.”

Jongdae laughed. “Luhan’s right, you’re adorable,” he stated, sliding an arm around Sehun’s waist and yanking him to his side. “You’re not saying no, are you?”

“I’m not,” Sehun agreed, ducking his head to let Jongdae kiss him.

Jongdae’s lips were as good at kissing as they were pretty. Sehun laughed slightly, feeling Jongdae’s lips tighten into a smile against his own. Sehun pulled away, then kissed him again. And again.

Luhan tutted from across the landing. “See why I voted Jongdae the horniest drunk?”

“Don’t be jealous, Luhan,” Jongdae said, before giving Sehun one final peck. “It’s not good for your face.”

“I’m not jealous.”

“Don’t know why you wouldn’t be,” Jongdae shrugged, pulling away from Sehun to follow his friends down the corridor. “He’s a good kisser.”

Sehun flushed, strangely happy with the compliment.

Luhan rolled his eyes. “Congratulations, Jongdae, you’ve taken Sehun’s innocence.”

“He has not,” Sehun protested, suddenly finding himself leaning against the banister. Which was strange, because he swore had had been walking straight. The others laughed at him for a few seconds before he registered the sound. “Shut up.”

“Come here, you dork,” Luhan chided affectionately, pulling him away from the edge. “You’re so cute.”

“I’m not,” Sehun protested again, but allowed Luhan to pull him wherever they were going.

“Holy shit,” he slurred when they turned off the corridor, into the biggest bedroom Sehun had ever seen in his life. “Is this your room?”

“Yeah,” Jongdae sighed. “I know, I know, it’s big, I’m rich, whatever.”

“Your bed looks so comfortable,” Sehun sighed longingly.

“Please, Sehun. We’ve only known each other two days, don’t you think it’s a bit early to try to get into my bed?”

Kris chortled. “Early? Is two days early for you now, Jongdae?”

“Who asked you?” Jongdae snapped, in good humour. “Get through the damn window, you dinosaur. I want to see you try.”

“The window?” Sehun repeated faintly, watching in confusion as Kris grumbled to himself, clambering out of the window on the far side of the room.

“This is where we go to smoke,” Luhan explained, “Because Jongdae’s cleaners whine non stop about the smell of tobacco in the carpet.”

“You have cleaners?”

“Luhan, can you shut up?” Jongdae snapped, climbing out the window after Kris.

“Okay,” Sehun said slowly, his drunk brain trying to catch up with what was happening.

“Don’t worry,” Luhan comforted him while Minseok hopped up onto the sill. “It will make sense in a second.”

Sehun nodded, trusting him but still confused. Luhan placed a hand in the small of his back, pushing him to climb out first.

Sehun did so, hooking his leg up onto the sill and hoisting himself up through the frame, finding himself on a slightly sloping roof, tiled, with a solar panel on one side, Kris and Jongdae lighting up on the other.

“Sehun, shift your butt,” Luhan whined, patting his ass to get him to move out of the way. “I need to get out too.”

“Sorry,” Sehun mumbled, crawling over to where Jongdae was settling, puffing thick white smoke from between his pretty lips. A teetering ashtray was balanced on the sloped surface, overflowing with butts. Kris leaned against the jutting window, moaning in satisfaction.

Luhan tutted at the sight of the ashtray. “Jongdae, what were you saying about only smoking when you drink?”

“I’ve been drinking a lot.”

“You’re a mess,” Luhan shook his head.

“You’re one to talk.”

Sehun watched them smoking silently for a minute. “Does it really feel that good?” he asked.

“Why, do you want to bum one?” Jongdae asked.

“Jongdae, no,” Luhan admonished. “Don’t try for the first time when you’re drunk, Sehun. You’ll be sick.”

“Oh, it would be your first time,” Jongdae nodded. “In that case, I agree with Luhan.”

“It’s a filthy habit,” Minseok noted. “I’m not even twenty and I’ve already quit twice. Don’t start, you’ll be stuck.”

Sehun nodded. Just the smell was making him feel slightly nauseous. “Okay.”

He needn’t have said anything. Luhan and Jongdae were already making out beside him. Kris pretended to gag.

Or maybe he wasn’t pretending. “Hey,” Jongdae pulled away from Luhan for a second. “Don’t spew on my roof, dude. The edge is right there. Don’t fall off though.”

“Actually, I know all of you are drunk as shit,” Minseok added, “Nobody fall off the edge, okay.”

Nobody replied to him, Kris tipping his head back and trying to breathe in clean air, Jongdae and Luhan trying to breathe in each other’s lungs.

“Okay then, die, what do I care,” Minseok sighed, sitting back and dragging from his cigarette.

Sehun crossed his legs and looked up at the stars. This had been a fun night.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1 like = 1 dollar donated to the Games Night Alcohol Fund  
> Guys I love games night so much you don't even know


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Kyungsoo paused. “Wait, who’s Jongdae?”_
> 
> _“Yixing’s boyfriend.”_
> 
> _Kyungsoo sat back down. “Wait, I’m confused. Start from the beginning. You kissed Yixing’s boyfriend?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

 

When Sehun woke up, he was squashed between the back of the sofa and Luhan, snoring quietly. His mouth tasted like death and his school shirt was stiff with dry sweat from the early hours of the morning. Fortunately, the rec room was relatively dark, so he cracked one eye open and glanced around the room. Minseok and Kris were snoozing on a couch each, Minseok wrapped like a burrito in a comfortable-looking quilt. The horrendous mess they’d left on the coffee table had been cleared away, replaced by a sweating jug of water and a few glasses.

Sehun really wanted that water.

He tried to pull his arm out from under Luhan, grimacing at the dissatisfied whine the older boy let out, and sat up carefully, easing himself off the couch. He sat down next to the table, pouring himself a glass, and closed his eyes against the pounding in his head as he gulped it down. He sculled half of another before groaning at the uncomfortable sloshing in his stomach.

“You’re up,” came Yixing’s soft voice from the doorway.

Sehun opened his eyes and glanced over. The light from the door was agonizingly bright. “What time is it?”

“One thirty,” Yixing came in and sat down on the floor beside him.

“Dude.”

“You guys were up pretty late,” Yixing reassured him. “Don’t worry about it. I’m impressed you’re even up this early, frankly. Jongdae’s still in bed. He’s not gonna be getting up for a while.” He grinned.

“Thanks for the water,” Sehun nodded at the table. “I really needed that.”

“Oh, I didn’t bring that.” Yixing shook his head. “The maid probably did when she started at seven. She’s used to this kind of thing happening.”

“Oh, right,” Sehun rolled his eyes. “Of course there’s a maid. What was I thinking?”

Yixing shook his head again and helped himself to a glass. “Are you hungry? I was waiting for you all to wake up before I ate, but it looks like they’re going to be a while. We can eat first if you want.”

“I just feel kind of sick,” Sehun admitted. “But we can try waking them up.”

“Your funeral.”

Sehun shrugged and made to move to Minseok’s couch, but Yixing put a hand on his arm. “No, not him. Not first. Start with Yifan.”

“…Okay…” Sehun rolled on his hips and leaned over to Kris’ side. He carefully placed a hand on his shoulder, giving him a gentle shake. “Kris?”

He didn’t move.

Sehun shook harder. “Kris. Wake up.”

Kris opened one eye sleepily, groaning and closing it again when he saw who it was.

“I have water,” Sehun sang, without ceasing his shaking. “Don’t you want some?”

Kris groaned again and blinked both eyes open, nodding once. Sehun poured him a glass and went back. Kris was rubbing the gunk out of his eyes. “You have to sit up.”

Kris let out an angry grunt but started to push himself upright on stiff joints. Sehun winced at the crack in his wrist.

“’Nks,” Kris let out in way of thanks, and took the glass.

Sehun nodded, satisfied, then moved over to Minseok’s sofa. “Minseok,” he murmured, repeating his shoulder shaking manoeuvre. Minseok grunted loudly, angrily, and pulled the blanket further over his face. “Minseokie, wake up,” Sehun cajoled, running his fingers through Minseok’s hair. “It’s afternoon already…”

Minseok’s arm came flying out of nowhere, knuckles slapping Sehun clean across the face.

“Ow!” Sehun yelled, falling back onto his butt.

“I warned you,” Yixing snickered.

“Minseok,” Sehun whined, leaning back in with a pout.

Yixing raised an eyebrow, sipping his water. “And he goes back for seconds.”

Sehun patted Minseok on the cheek. “Why did you hit me? Wake up, I’m hungry,” he whinged.

Minseok pulled the blanket down and glared at him. “You’re lucky you’re cute,” he croaked. “Is there water?”

“Hey, what the hell,” Yixing protested. “How come Sehun only gets hit once?”

Minseok ignored him, silently downing a glass of water, passing the cup to Sehun for a refill, then downing the second glass, without sitting up. Sehun was impressed.

“Fine, I’m waking up Luhan, then,” Yixing grumbled. He stood up, grabbed Luhan by the arm and pulled, sending him crashing to the floor. “Good morning, sunshine.”

Luhan yelled, sitting up immediately and screaming at Yixing what Sehun could only assume were obscenities before dissolving into coughs. Sehun silently handed him the second last glass. 

“I like Sehun way more than you,” Luhan snapped, glaring at Yixing.

“That’s no secret,” Yixing replied with relish, standing up. “I’ll go ask Ryeowook to get lunch started, then.”

Sehun glanced around the room at his friends, in various states of disarray and wakefulness. Kris had his head in one hand, the empty glass hanging loosely from the other. Minseok had his eyes closed again, leaning back on the arm of the sofa. Luhan was taking his time with his drink.

Sehun rubbed the back of his head and shifted closer to Luhan. “Did I kiss Jongdae?” he asked tentatively.

“Yep,” Luhan responded immediately.

Sehun thought for a moment. “Did I kiss you?”

“Yep,” Luhan repeated.

Sehun felt a twinge.

“A lot?”

“Yep.”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

“Can we not be here for your awkward morning after?” Kris pleaded.

Luhan rolled his eyes. “Come on, Sehun. Let’s go get some food.”

 

*

 

“Well, I’m just glad you’re okay,” Kyungsoo said blandly, piling more noodles onto Sehun’s plate. “Keep eating.”

Sehun happily obliged, pulling his plate back in front of him. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m sorry to make you worry, Soo.”

“Everyone thought something had happened to you,” Kyungsoo chided, watching Sehun’s face closely. “I mean I understand that you just needed some time to yourself, but just bear that in mind, okay?”

Sehun sighed. “What have you heard?”

Kyungsoo thought over the past few days. “Since you and Chanyeol sorted your shit out?” he hummed. “Well — let me get this in order — first, from what I can gather, the Chinese seniors were worried about you because of you being all depressed from the Baekhyun thing. Then Tao and Chanyeol came up with that scheme to make you happy again, and Tao was keeping them updated on it. Then, I think, while Chanyeol was singing to you, or on that day at least, Baekhyun told the Chinese seniors about what you were doing. From what gossip _I’ve_ gathered, Baekhyun either slept with, or tried to sleep with, Kris. I’m not really sure. Then I’m a little sketchy on the details but Tao and Chanyeol told me you were really upset and yelled at Tao, then went MIA for a day and a half until Kris told Chanyeol that they’d found you. After that, I didn’t hear anything until you showed up just now.” He took a sip of water. “So that’s the whole story, as far as I know it. Anything you care to add?”

_Kyungsoo doesn’t ship you with Jongin_ , Tao’s words echoed in Sehun’s mind. He hesitated. “Um… I guess not too much. I had a really nice night with the seniors on Friday, but…” he shrugged. “Tell me about this Baekhyun thing?”

“With Kris?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t know much. Chanyeol was having a whinge about Baekhyun flirting with Kris, but Baekhyun didn’t want to tell him anything about it while they were eating together, or whatever.”

“That’s all?”

“Yeah.” Kyungsoo peered at him. “How are you feeling?”

“After yesterday, fine,” Sehun admitted. “I was feeling pretty shit for a while but the seniors cheered me right up.”

“That was supposed to be my job,” Kyungsoo complained playfully. “Are you leaving me, Sehun?”

“Never,” Sehun assured him. “They don’t make me food like you do.”

“Of course.” Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “That’s what I’m here for.”

“Naturally.”

Kyungsoo narrowed his eyes. “You’ve got a weird look on your face. What happened that night?”

“Nothing.”

Kyungsoo gasped. “Sehun! You’re _lying_ to _me_!” he put his cutlery down. “Now I have to know what happened.”

“Nothing, really. Those guys are just super into skinship, you know?”

“So are we!” Kyungsoo protested.

Sehun wiggled his eyebrows. “This is another level.”

“SEHUN!”

“I kissed two of them, okay?”

Kyungsoo screeched, and Sehun couldn’t contain his grin. “WHICH ONES?” Kyungsoo demanded, whacking Sehun repeatedly on the arm.

“Get off me!” Sehun howled, holding up his hands to block Kyungsoo’s attacks. “Luhan and Jongdae!”

Kyungsoo paused. “Wait, who’s Jongdae?”

“Yixing’s boyfriend.”

Kyungsoo sat back down. “Wait, I’m confused. Start from the beginning. You kissed Yixing’s boyfriend?”

“Well, it’s a bit complicated,” Sehun lied. He could easily explain it — Yixing and Jongdae’s relationship was literally the dream. But he was afraid his excitement about it would spill out onto Kyungsoo and raise an entirely new series of questions. “But in short, Jongdae kisses everybody, actually they all seem pretty chill about kissing each other, Yixing knows, he doesn’t care or anything…” he realized he was rambling a little. “Jongdae just like… offered to kiss me, so I said yes, and I kissed Luhan because I was really drunk.”

Kyungsoo was frowning slightly. “And you’re okay about all this?”

“Yeah.” Sehun nodded. “Actually, I am. Luhan talked to me about it afterwards and… yeah. It was fun, and I’m fine.”

“What did he say to you?”

Sehun thought for a moment, so he was sure he would get the sentiment right. “He told me that their group kiss each other all the time, and it didn’t have to mean anything. I shouldn’t feel bad or guilty about it, and I didn’t even have to feel like anything changed. We are still the same friends that we were before.”

“Are you happy?”

“Yeah. I am.”

Kyungsoo smiled. “Then that’s okay.”

Sehun beamed. “It was actually really freeing! When he said that to me I didn’t feel guilty at all… I felt like everything was going to be okay. And I realized that I could probably apply it to the time Jongin kissed m—” he cut off abruptly, realizing suddenly that he hadn’t meant to tell Kyungsoo that.

Kyungsoo’s face was suddenly stony.

“It didn’t mean anything,” he said, quietly, almost a whisper. “It was just a mistake. He stopped right away.”

“Kisses don’t happen by accident.”

Sehun shifted awkwardly. “Are you angry?”

“Yes.” Kyungsoo sighed after a moment. “I don’t know why, but yes.”

Sehun appreciated his honesty. “I’m sorry.”

Kyungsoo shook his head. “It’s not fair for me to be mad at you if I don’t even know why. Don’t worry about it.”

“I will,” Sehun replied. “That’s how friends work.”

Kyungsoo pushed his plate away and rested his head on his arms on the table. “I think… I don’t like you with Jongin. He’s not good.”

“He’s trying,” Sehun felt a pang of defensiveness for his friend. He really was — he’d left his awful friend group completely, he’d almost managed to completely quit smoking, and he cared about Sehun a lot.

Kyungsoo’s face twisted. “Sure.”

“I’m not ‘with’ Jongin anyway. He doesn’t like me. And I’m getting over him.”

“Are you, though?”

Sehun couldn’t reply to that one.

 

*

 

“Sehun.” Jongin greeted, answering the door with a lit cigarette between his fingers.

“Hi,” Sehun said back.

Jongin took a drag and puffed out, maintaining eye contact. “What brings you here?”

“Can we talk?”

Jongin nodded silently, moving aside to let him in. Sehun toed his shoes off, and Jongin wandered down the hall to the living room. There was someone else on the couch, watching a music awards show. “Sehun, this is Taemin, he rents out my oldest sister’s room,” Jongin introduced, waving his cigarette at the other guy. “Taemin, this is my friend Sehun.”

“Hi,” Taemin waved, and Sehun murmured a “Nice to meet you” back. Jongin put his cigarette out in the ashtray on the coffee table. “Shall we go to my room?”

Sehun nodded, and Jongin put his hands in his pockets, leading him down another short, dark hall to his bedroom. Sehun caught sight of the bathroom through the open door — the kind of old, brown tiles that would always look grimy, no matter how clean they were. It was a far cry from Jongdae’s lavish borderline-mansion, but despite how chill Jongdae seemed, and how awkward the air between him and Jongin was, Sehun felt orders of magnitude more comfortable here. Jongin opened his bedroom door and gestured for Sehun to go in first.

“I thought you might not want to talk to me anymore,” Jongin admitted as he closed the door against Taemin’s curious ears. He didn’t seem guilty, just kind of tired.

“I didn’t, for a couple of days,” Sehun explained. “I didn’t want to talk to anyone, though. Not just you.”

“Oh?” Jongin sat down on his bed. Sehun perched himself on the desk chair, swinging from side to side.

“I just came to say no hard feelings,” Sehun said, “That is, if you don’t have any.”

“Really?” Jongin’s voice was flat.

“Really.” Sehun looked up at the ceiling. “I had a few days to think and kind of come to terms with myself. I like you. I like being friends with you. I like what we have.” He brought his face back down to look at Jongin. “I acted up out of stress but that wasn’t me. That’s not who I want to be. I get that you panicked, and it’s because you care about me. As a friend.”

Jongin nodded.

“So…” Sehun thought about what Luhan had said to him, and how much it had put him at ease. He tried to put the sentiment into his own words. “You know… that… it doesn’t really matter. It didn’t mean anything, at least not anything that would change our relationship, you know. It doesn’t matter to me if we acknowledge it, or if we pretend it never happened, because I really think we can go back to how we were.”

“You reckon?”

“I reckon.”

Jongin sucked in his lips. “Um…” he hesitated. “I… I might need a few days to reflect now.”

“Fair enough.” Sehun stood up. “I think that’s all I had to say.” He gazed at Jongin’s tired eyes, his strained expression, his teeth chewing on his thumbnail. “Well… come talk to me when you’re ready, or don’t, if you don’t want to see me again. I understand if you don’t. But for what it’s worth, I want you around.”

Jongin said nothing.

“I’ll see myself out.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short one today~ I'll put up another one tomorrow :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Fuck,” Luhan breathed as he approached, staring in horror. Sehun hid his face in Tao’s chest. “Sehun, what happened?”_
> 
>  
> 
> _“I want to go home.”_
> 
>  
> 
> _“Who did this?” Luhan demanded._
> 
>  
> 
> _“I want to go home.”_
> 
>  
> 
> _“You know who did it,” Tao muttered._
> 
>  
> 
> _“They’re going to pay,” Luhan announced coldly._
> 
>  
> 
> _“No. No fighting.” Sehun pulled away and tried to get up. “I’m going home.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: R

 

 

 

Sehun felt his entire body stiffen as he saw who was waiting against his locker on Monday.

“Well hello there,” Baekhyun sang, beaming cutely at him.

“Hello.” Sehun responded tightly, pausing a few steps away.

“I missed you,” Baekhyun pouted, not moving from blocking Sehun’s locker door. “I almost thought you were avoiding me, Sehunnie.”

Sehun just grunted in response, staying where he was.

“What’s that face? It’s almost like you don’t want to see me.”

Sehun said nothing. Baekhyun pushed away from the wall and took a step forward. Sehun took a step back.

“What’s the matter?”

“Stop telling people what we did,” Sehun blurted out.

“Oh,” Baekhyun pushed his lips down and his eyebrows up in a look of sarcastic surprise. “I thought you and your friends shared everything. My bad.”

Sehun could feel his heart speed up. He wasn’t prepared for this confrontation. “Well we don’t.”

“I’ll keep quiet next time, then.”

“Next time.”

“Don’t tell me you regret it,” Baekhyun scoffed. “You _loved_ it. There’s no point trying to lie to me.”

“Retrospect is 20/20.”

“Please,” Baekhyun rolled his eyes, suddenly shooting forward and grabbing Sehun’s tie, bringing his body a hair’s breadth from Sehun’s and letting out a warm breath against his neck. “There’s no point lying to yourself, either.”

Sehun shoved him away roughly. “People can _see us_ ,” he hissed, glancing around at the pre-first-period crowd.

“Let’s go somewhere more private, then,” Baekhyun agreed, grabbing his hand and pulling him away. Sehun tried to free himself, but Baekhyun’s grip was like a vice. Baekhyun led him into the boy’s bathroom, blessedly empty, and pushed him against the wall. Sehun shivered, unable to tear his mind way from the memory of Baekhyun, naked, riding his dick.

“Sex isn’t bad,” Baekhyun whispered, placing his hands on Sehun’s chest. His hands were warm through the thin fabric of Sehun’s school shirt. “You know that. You’re friends with Luhan.” He let out a sigh through parted lips, nosing along Sehun’s jawline as he smoothed his hands up over Sehun’s shoulders to push his bag off. It fell to the floor with a dull thump. “I really missed you,” he admitted. “Fucking you was so much fun.”

“Why are you doing this.”

“Because I want you.” Baekhyun nipped at the soft skin of his throat. “I want you to do me. Now. Here.”

“Are you crazy?” Sehun croaked, desperately holding back a moan when Baekhyun rolled his hips up against his crotch. Fuck hormones, for real. His body was craving a repeat of their last encounter. The thought of how nice it was to kiss — Jongin, Jongdae, Luhan — danced across his mind. Baekhyun’s mouth on his cock.

“Nobody needs to know,” Baekhyun urged him. “I’ll keep my mouth shut if that’s what you want. I promise. _Please_ ,” he moaned, tweaking Sehun’s nipples with both hands. “Please, Sehunnie, please…”

Sehun whimpered, roughly grabbing Baekhyun’s hair and smashing their lips together.

He couldn’t resist. Baekhyun smelled too good, felt too good, sounded too good. He loved Jongdae’s philosophy — sex was not love, sex was not emotion. Sex was purely physical. And if Baekhyun really did keep his mouth shut, what was the harm?

Baekhyun fumbled down, undoing his belt and quickly undoing his fly, shoving his hand in. Sehun bit Baekhyun’s lips, eliciting a high pitched noise that sent him stiffening against Baekhyun’s palm.

“Cubicle,” he grunted, and Baekhyun nodded, tearing open one of the stalls and locking it behind them. He slammed the toilet lid and yanked Sehun’s pants down before pushing him onto it. Sehun’s breathing was heavy as he watched Baekhyun sink to his knees and settle between his legs. His ankles were trapped in his pants and he squirmed to get at least one foot free; Baekhyun placed a hand on his thigh to steady himself, sending a harsh tremor right up Sehun’s spine. Baekhyun let out a sigh of satisfaction, starting to suck happily on the head of Sehun’s cock.

Sehun let out an involuntary noise, grabbing fistfuls of Baekhyun’s hair again when he snickered. Baekhyun choked, letting Sehun fall from his lips. “Yes,” he breathed, “Be rough with me.”

“You said you wouldn’t talk,” Sehun growled, thrusting up to push his dick back into Baekhyun’s mouth.

Baekhyun moaned gleefully, letting Sehun fuck his face. Sehun watched his eyes start to water, then turned his gaze to the movement of Baekhyun’s shoulder as he jerked himself off.

Eventually Baekhyun pushed Sehun’s hands off his head, wiping his eyes and nose and looking up. “Eat me out,” he ordered, “Get me nice and wet…”

“How?”

Baekhyun waved his hands to indicate he should stand up. Sehun did so, stumbling over his pants. Baekhyun dropped his own, squishing past him to bend over the toilet. Sehun squatted on one knee, grabbed a buttock in each hand and pulled them apart. Baekhyun whimpered, melting into a loud moan as Sehun dragged his tongue up his crack, one long stripe, balls to dimples. He did that twice, then locked his jaw, lapping against Baekhyun’s loose hole.

“ _Yes_ ,” Baekhyun groaned, “Spit on me, put your tongue in me, yeah, oh god, I want you I want you I _want you_ …”

Sehun obliged, his saliva pasting his chin to Baekhyun’s ass as he pushed his tongue right in. Baekhyun whined, one knee trembling. His cheeks clenched and Sehun dug his thumbs in, pulling them open again. He could feel a chill on his damp cock, cold emanating from the tiled floor. He stood up, wiping his face as he pressed against Baekhyun’s wet, sticky entrance.

“No, condom, condom, condom,” Baekhyun protested, pulling away. “Wallet. Back pocket.”

Sehun let out a grunt of frustration but complied, fumbling in Baekhyun’s pants pockets, pulling out the condom and quickly rolling it on. He tried to push in again, met only with resistance.

“It’s not wet enough.”

“Swap.”

Sehun sat back down on the lid, Baekhyun going down on him again, mouth open, using as much spit as possible. Sehun waited impatiently, itching to get down to business. Baekhyun finally pulled away; he pressed his back against the cubicle door, beckoning Sehun to stand up. He pulled the taller boy close, hooking one leg around his waist, bringing a hand down to guide him to his entrance. Sehun pressed his forehead against the wood, grimacing as he felt Baekhyun’s rim catching against the rubber of the condom. They really should be doing this with lube, he thought, but Baekhyun just breathed deeply, gripped him tight and pushed his ass down to let him in.

“Oh,” Baekhyun breathed when Sehun thrust in the final inch. He paused there, adjusting his arm around Baekhyun’s waist and bracing his feet on the floor.

“Fuck me,” Baekhyun ordered, and Sehun started thrusting for real. Baekhyun felt amazing, the sensation intensified by the ‘ _oh_ ’s ‘ _ah_ ’s and ‘ _yes_ ’s sobbed against his shoulder. Baekhyun clung on for dear life, foot slipping against the floor; Sehun tightened his bicep, holding him in place. He could feel his own noises climbing up his throat, but he couldn’t hear them over the rush in his ears or the rattle of the door on its hinges.

“ _Sehun_ ,” Baekhyun cried out, digging his nails in. “ _Sehun, yes_ … oh god, I want to come, Sehun please…”

His voice, raw and strained, sent Sehun over the edge. He sped up for a final few thrusts, releasing into Baekhyun’s ass with a desperate groan. He didn’t even care that he hadn’t lasted that long — his legs and arms were starting to cramp, and it felt _unbelievably_ good. Baekhyun let out a sob of pleasure as Sehun hit him deep inside, weight coming back down onto his own leg as he lowered one arm to frantically jack his own cock. Sehun pushed his own trembling hand between their bodies, hooking his thumb under his own shirt, pinky under Baekhyun’s, pushing them up out of the way of Baekhyun’s load. He let out a shuddering sigh, pulling out and falling back onto the toilet. Baekhyun sank to the ground, leaning against the wall, thankful that they went all the way to the floor. Still holding his penis, his left hand fumbled with his lower buttons to keep his shirt away from the mess of jizz on his stomach. Sehun closed his eyes, struggling to catch his breath.

“That was so good,” Baekhyun breathed, a smile dancing on his lips. Sehun said nothing, but pulled some toilet paper from the roll and passed it to him. “Thanks,” he said gratefully, watching lazily as Sehun pulled the condom off carefully and dropped it into the toilet bowl. “That’s not gonna flush.”

“I don’t care.”

“Oh shit,” Baekhyun gasped as he tried to stand up, but his knees gave way and he fell onto his hands instead. “Oh _man_ that was good.”

Sehun stared down at him blankly. “You’re not going to tell anyone?”

“I promised, didn’t I?” Baekhyun agreed. “For real. I’ll do whatever you want to keep you willing to fuck me.”

Sehun sighed. He couldn’t deny he wouldn’t mind doing something like this again. There wasn’t really anyone he’d want to date except for Jongin, which was a lost cause, so he may as well indulge himself physically. “Deal.”

“Fuck yes.” Baekhyun slumped onto his hip, resting his head on Sehun’s thigh. Sehun stroked his hair; there was really no reason to be mean to him. Baekhyun looked exceptionally vulnerable at that moment. Sehun felt his anger fade, his heart soften. Baekhyun smiled. “You’re going to be late for class.”

“Whatever.”

Baekhyun hummed happily, bringing his hand to Sehun’s bony knee.

Sehun closed his eyes. He could sit here for a moment. What was the harm?

 

*

 

The harm showed up at lunchtime. All six of them came out of nowhere, a clammy hand clamping over his mouth as they hustled him out behind the gym. He kicked and struggled, but other than swearing at him, they ignored his thrashing and dragged him the final few feet across the stony, unkempt grass and cigarette butts behind the bare brick wall.

“Get off me!” he yelled when the hand finally left his mouth, and was rewarded with a solid punch to the eye socket. He groaned dazedly, falling back and hitting his head against the brick. More punches fell on him, his stomach, his throat. A heavy foot came down on his ankle and he shrieked, sobbing while one of them grabbed his hair and shoved his face close.

“Do you know why we’re doing this to you?” he snarled, and Sehun just stared back, struggling to catch his breath. The older boy spat in his face, fisting his other hand in the front of his shirt. “You’re a freak. An abomination. You’re a danger to society.”

Sehun spat back. They punched him in the face again. He tasted blood.

“If you bring your perverted faggotry to our school, you get punished,” the boy hissed, releasing Sehun’s hair and letting him fall back against the wall again. He signaled to his friends, who rushed forward to hold Sehun’s limbs down. The leader pulled at Sehun’s tie, the knot tightening against his windpipe, his vision blurring. Sehun’s struggles weakened. _He might actually die_.

The smell of the permanent marker reached his nose again and he cried out, trying to break free, but the boys on each of his arms grabbed his hair and held his head still. The leader pulled the skin of his face taut as he started drawing, all over his forehead, cheeks, throat. The last remaining boy grabbed his shirt pocket and tore it off, baring his nipple, then grabbed it and twisted it so hard Sehun screamed, convulsing in their grip. The leader backed away.

“Cover me, so the pervert can’t see my dick,” he ordered, and one of the boys grabbed Sehun’s face, yanking it to the side and covering his eyes.

“ _No! No! get off me!”_ he shrieked, feeling the vomit rise in his throat as the hot, wet stream rained down on his chest.

Raucous laughter met his ears. “Oh my god, I want to piss on him too,” one of them crowed, letting go of his leg; Sehun retched, the boy holding his face quickly scooting back as he threw up right where he’d been crouching.

“Gross,” the boy whined, “Bro, he almost spewed on me, kick him again!”

The leader zipped up and obliged, grinding his heel into Sehun’s stomach. The others let him go, and Sehun watched helplessly as they slashed his bag and textbooks.

“Learn your place, faggot,” the leader spat.

Then they were gone.

Sehun fell onto his side, the stench of piss and vomit drawing what remained of his breakfast out onto the grass. He could see blood. He reached for his phone, his violently trembling hands and blurred vision making it almost impossible to type, but he managed to get one message sent before he blacked out.

_Back og gym bring track unifrom pls help_

 

*

 

“ _Sehun_!” Tao shrieked, dropping the bright orange uniform as he fell to the ground beside where Sehun lay.

Sehun groaned to indicate his consciousness, rolling onto his back.

“Oh my god. Oh my god,” Tao babbled repeatedly, taking Sehun’s face in his hands. Sehun whimpered in pain. “Holy shit. Can you sit up?”

“Help,” Sehun croaked.

“I’m here, I’m gonna help you,” Tao soothed, planting his hands under Sehun’s arms and hauling him upright. “Let’s get you changed, okay?” his voice was shaking. Sehun just nodded, his lips too swollen and sore to speak. “Holy fuck,” Tao muttered, gingerly undoing Sehun’s shirt buttons.

He manoeuvred Sehun like a doll, carefully removing his clothes and replacing them with the clean track uniform. He balled up the soiled outfit and shoved it into what remained of Sehun’s bag, drawing some makeup wipes from his own to clean his hands, then the blood from Sehun’s chin.

“Hold tight for a second,” Tao whispered, resting his hand on Sehun’s shoulder as he raised his phone to his ear.

“No,” Sehun rasped, feebly raising his arm. “Don’t call anyone here—” but Tao ignored him, crying down the receiver in Mandarin.

He dropped the phone when he was done, sitting down beside Sehun and pulling his friend’s head into his shoulder. Sehun clung to him, breathing in shuddering pants. “Luhan’s on his way,” Tao murmured.

“No. I want to go home,” Sehun whispered, curling his fingers in Tao’s shirt. “I want to go home.”

“He’s going to help me take you home,” Tao soothed him, rubbing his back. “It’s going to be okay, Sehun. I promise.”

Luhan wasn’t far, the gym located on the edge of the oval. Sehun could hear him running to where they were.

“ _Fuck_ ,” Luhan breathed as he approached, staring in horror. Sehun hid his face in Tao’s chest. “Sehun, what happened?”

“I want to go home.”

“Who did this?” Luhan demanded.

“I want to go home.”

“You know who did it,” Tao muttered.

“They’re going to pay,” Luhan announced coldly.

“No. No fighting.” Sehun pulled away and tried to get up. “I’m going home.” He let out a sob as he tried to put his weight on his bad ankle and it gave way. He didn’t think it was broken, just badly bruised, but he still wasn’t going to be able to walk on it. “Shit.”

Luhan squatted down, sliding himself under Sehun’s arm, propping him up on his shoulders. “It’s okay, Sehun. We’ll take you home. It’s alright.”

“Hold him up,” Tao requested, pulling the strings on Sehun’s hoodie and adjusting the fabric with his bangs to hide his forehead. He brought a flu mask out of his backpack and carefully hooked it over Sehun’s ears. “There’s… a lot of stuff on your face,” he explained carefully. “Just going to cover it up, okay?”

Sehun nodded gratefully. “ _Tao, pass me his bag_ ,” Luhan waved at it, and Tao carefully gathered up the torn flaps, pushing it into Luhan’s free hand. He slung his own over his shoulders, then moved to prop up Sehun’s other side. “Let’s go,” Luhan hummed gently, “We’ll go slow. Lunch is over in five minutes, no one will be around. Okay?”

“Okay.”

 

*

 

“I’m sorry you had to see me like this,” Sehun whispered as Luhan helped him into the bath.

“Don’t be stupid,” Luhan murmured back, searching the bathroom cupboards for disinfectant and gauze. “Don’t you remember when we met?”

Sehun sighed. His friends had put bubble bath in the water to give him some kind of modesty, but the soap stung against his scratches. Tao came running in. “I found these in his mom’s bathroom,” he announced, dumping a selection of cosmetic cleansers and makeup removers on the sink.

“Great,” Luhan praised him, checking the ingredients of the products to see what would be most effective on the permanent marker. “Can I put this on your face, Sehun? It’s acetone.”

“Whatever you think is best,” Sehun mumbled back. He didn't want to think.

Luhan hummed thoughtfully. “I’ll try this first, but Tao…” he turned back to the younger Chinese boy. “Can you look for a brush cleaner? Anything with isopropyl alcohol.”

Tao blinked.

“I-so-pro-pyl,” Luhan repeated slowly.

“Isopropyl,” Tao nodded and ran out again.

“How do you know this shit?” Sehun asked.

Luhan chuckled. “Chemistry is the basis to all skincare. And drugs.” He replied. “I can’t pass a math test for shit, but I can tell you anything you want to know about what various chemicals do.”

“Useful,” Sehun snorted.

“Hey, don’t knock what could save your life one day,” Luhan chided, “Or your face, as the case may be.” He knelt down beside the tub, clipped Sehun’s bangs back and started to apply the nail polish remover to his forehead. Sehun winced at the sting. “Sorry.”

“I found brush cleaner,” Tao announced, wandering back in and pointing to the active ingredient on the bottom of the bottle. “This is it, right? Isopropyl alcohol?”

“Amazing,” Luhan beamed. “Yeah, that’s right.”

Tao grinned, pleased with himself.

“Make sure you put all my mom’s stuff back where you found it,” Sehun warned, “She’ll kill me otherwise.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course,” Tao flapped a hand. “I’m going to go get some ice. Either of you want a drink while I’m in the kitchen?”

“I’m fine, but don’t get Sehun anything,” Luhan ordered. “He’s probably in shock.”

“Okay.”

“I’m not allowed to drink?”

“No. You’ll bring it straight back up,” Luhan explained shortly, switching the acetone for isopropyl. “Oh good, this is working.”

“You’re so cool,” Sehun murmured, playing with some bubbles.

Luhan smiled, fingers lingering on Sehun’s skin. “I know.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: most permanent markers are alcohol-based so use something made of alcohol to get it off!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Tao played with his rings on his fingers, turning to Chanyeol and Sehun. “In any case, because we haven’t had a chat in ages, what’s new with you guys?” he asked. “Sehun you’ve been super secretive with what you’re doing with the Seniors lately. We tell them everything! Why do they never tell us stuff about you?”_
> 
> _“Because they don’t live off gossip?” Sehun suggested jokingly._
> 
> _“Well that’s not it,” Chanyeol rolled his eyes back._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-13

 

 

 

On Tuesday, Chanyeol, Tao and Kyungsoo were waiting for Sehun at the train station when he emerged from the underground platform. Kyungsoo’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of him, and Chanyeol flew over to give him a hug.

“We heard what happened,” he yelled, and Sehun let out a cry of pain as Chanyeol squeezed him too tight. “Shit, sorry. Are you alright?”

Sehun nodded, smiling at his friends. “I’m okay. Bruised, but I can walk. I’ll be fine.”

“You look terrible,” Kyungsoo noted blandly. “Steer clear of Joonmyun if you can.”

Sehun knew he looked terrible. Most of his face was purple and swollen, and he’d had to squeeze into his brother’s old uniform. His parents had both given him a solid earful about getting into fights and he’d stayed up most of the night taping his textbooks back together. He didn’t want to hear what his father would have to say if he’d asked him to pay for new ones. But Luhan and Tao had helped him wrap his ankle, and he could more or less walk competently. His mother, even through her anger and disappointment, had made him breakfast. He was grateful.

 

*

 

The whole class stared at him as he entered the room. Sehun kept his head down, walking silently to his desk, defiantly dumping his dog’s-breakfast, hand-repaired textbooks on the desktop. In front and to the right of him, Jongin turned to gaze at him in horror. Sehun didn’t meet his eyes, pulling out his pens and pencils. The teacher cleared his throat for their attention, and his classmates’ heads all whipped back to the front.

Jongin’s stare lingered.

 

*

 

Sehun could see them coming out of the corner of his eye and quickly shut his locker, dread settling in his stomach. He turned to run, but the leader grabbed him and slammed him against the lockers. The structure rattled against his back and Sehun groaned.

“Haven’t you had enough?” he snapped, snatching the bully’s shirt back in a rare show of defiance. The older boy had a black eye and split lip of his own.

“You think you can just send your friends after us?” he spat, but before Sehun could reply, something heavy came flying from the side and knocked his attacker out of the way.

“That’s right,” Jongin answered flatly. “Is there gonna be a problem?”

“Get out of the way, Kai,” the leader snarled. “This doesn’t concern you.”

Jongin shifted to block Sehun. “Touch him again and I will end you. Everything will come out. No escaping this time.”

“Fuck off. We’ll take you down with us.”

“Oh yeah?” Jongin deadpanned. “Does the word _Itaewon_ mean anything to you?”

The leader pointed a threatening finger. “You had as much to do with that as we did. You ran with us back then.”

“You’re out of your mind if you think I won’t _fuck_ you up,” Jongin said coldly.

“You’re crazy.”

“If I see you so much as look at Sehun again, you’ll wish I killed you.”

Sehun stared at Jongin. His attackers seemed genuinely unsettled. “You don’t have the guts,” one of the younger boys piped up.

Jongin stared him down. “Try me.”

“This isn’t over,” the leader snarled.

“For your sake, it had better be,” Jongin replied calmly.

“Fuck you, you worthless faggot,” the older boy snapped as he gestured for his posse to walk away.

Jongin stood still without turning to look at Sehun. Sehun’s heart was racing. Even though he’d had a crush on Jongin for a long time, and he’d known he was friends with those guys, Jongin had always seemed tamer than the rest of them. He spent most of his time dancing, for crying out loud. He had no idea what they could possibly be talking about. What happened in Itaewon?

“Thanks,” he blurted out.

Jongin cleared his throat and finally turned around, gazing at Sehun with dead eyes. “Don’t thank me.”

Sehun swallowed. “Did… did you… beat them up yesterday?”

Jongin shook his head. “No. I don’t know what happened to them. I thought you might’ve gotten a couple punches in.”

Sehun cringed in shame and shook his head. “I don’t fight.” He figured that sounded a little less pathetic than ‘I couldn’t move then threw up’.

Jongin’s face twisted angrily. “Well at least someone gave him what he deserved,” he growled. “Well — it’s a start. He deserves to die.” He shook his head, rubbing his eyes. “I gotta go. I have physics next period.”

“Wait,” Sehun reached out and grabbed his arm. Jongin waited. “Can you walk me to class?” Sehun asked shyly. He didn’t want to admit he was scared to walk on his own, but his hands were trembling again.

Jongin’s face softened. “Yeah, of course,” he accepted softly, wrapping an arm around Sehun’s shoulders. “Let’s go.”

 

*

 

Luhan was waiting outside the classroom after fourth period. Sehun went to him gratefully, turning his back to the classmates filing out behind him.

“How are you doing?” Luhan asked, not as boisterous as he usually was.

“I wish everyone would stop staring,” Sehun admitted with a groan. “Like they’ve never seen a guy beat up before.”

“That sucks,” Luhan nodded sympathetically. “Do you want to come eat with us today?”

“Yeah,” Sehun accepted. “Let me stop by my locker.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you outside?”

“Um,” Sehun hesitated. “Can you come with me?”

“…Sure,” Luhan agreed, his expression guarded. Sehun appreciated it.

But there were no confrontations on the way to and from his locker. He felt a little stupid asking for an escort. But Luhan seemed to not mind, absently chatting and texting at the same time while they walked.

“I told the guys what happened,” he said as they headed for the oval. “I hope that’s okay. I thought it would be easier than if you suddenly just showed up looking like that.”

“Yeah, that’s okay,” Sehun murmured. “Thanks. I don’t think I could’ve told anybody myself.”

“That’s what I thought,” Luhan seemed relieved and waved to their friends as they approached.

Kris turned and did a double take at the sight of Sehun. “Holy shit,” he stated, mouth falling open before his expression set into stony fury.

“It’s not that bad,” Sehun protested, sitting down between Luhan and Minseok.

“It’s… pretty bad,” Yixing disagreed while Jongdae whistled.

Kris turned to Minseok. “We should have glassed them.” He stated icily.

Sehun’s stomach turned. “You did it?” he asked quietly.

“Yes.” Kris admitted unabashedly. “We’re not going to let them get away with abusing you.”

“We told you,” Minseok agreed, “From the beginning. You’re one of us, so we’re going to look out for you. Have they bothered you today?”

Sehun hesitated. If they thought they had to act, someone was going to get seriously hurt. “No,” he lied. “I, uh, I just saw a couple of black eyes in the hall.”

Minseok and Kris looked satisfied. Yixing, watching his expression from straight across the circle, looked suspicious. Sehun gave him the tiniest head shake while the rest of them turned their attention back to food. Yixing nodded back once.

Sehun started picking at his vegetables, half-listening to the conversations going on around him before a thought crashed down on him like a ton of bricks.

“BAEKHYUN,” he yelled suddenly, starting to pack his lunchbox back into his bag.

His friends’ faces morphed into various expressions of distaste. “What about him?” Minseok asked.

“They’re going to go after him,” Sehun stated with absolute certainty. “I need to check that he’s okay, see you later, bye,” he gushed before grabbing his bag and hobbling as fast as he could back to the school.

“Sehun, wait,” Kris yelled.

“What are you going to do?” Yixing added, making to stand up, pausing in an awkward half-squat. He glanced around at his friends. “Should we go after him?”

“Y-yeah,” Luhan agreed uncertainly, starting to pack his own lunch away. “He might need help?”

Kris scrunched up his face. “I don’t want to risk anything for that asshole.”

“It won’t be for Baekhyun,” Minseok announced, standing up and dusting himself off. “It will be for Sehun."

 

*

 

Sehun got all the way to the front of the school before he realized he had no idea where he should be going. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, dialing Chanyeol’s number — Chanyeol still followed Baekhyun everywhere, right?

“Sehun?” Chanyeol answered, voice hushed. “What’s the matter?”

“Is Baekhyun with you?”

“Uh,” Chanyeol hesitated. “Why?”

“I need to find him,” Sehun urged, hand jittering against his side. “It’s really important.”

“Yeah, he’s here…” Chanyeol admitted, “It’s nothing bad, is it?”

“Is he alright?”

“Huh?”

“Chanyeol! Is Baekhyun alright?” Sehun yelled down the phone. “I think those guys who beat me up are looking for him!”

“What!” Chanyeol yelped. “I mean, yeah, he’s fine. He’s with me. We’re under the bleachers.”

“I’m coming. Stay there.”

“Oh— o-okay,” Chanyeol conceded. Sehun hung up, running back the way he’d come. His ankle hurt, but he ignored it. He couldn’t see the perpetrators anywhere. He did run straight into Kris, though.

“Shit, sorry!” he yelled, pushing past and continuing to run.

“Sehun, wait!” Kris called after him.

“We’re coming with you! Minseok added.

“Holy shit I need to quit smoking,” Luhan gasped.

 

*

 

Sehun finally reached the gym, bursting in and dashing to the bleachers. He ducked underneath them, followed closely by the Chinese seniors.

“Oh thank god,” he breathed, collapsing beside Chanyeol and Baekhyun, who were casually sharing a bag of chips. “You’re okay.”

“What the fuck happened to you?” Baekhyun asked, pushing a chip into his mouth.

Sehun took a moment to catch his breath, looking around at the seven pairs of eyes on him. He suddenly remembered that his ankle hurt like _hell_.

He cleared his throat. “Someone heard us,” he said to Baekhyun. “You remember those guys who hit you when you first arrived?”

Baekhyun froze mid-chew. “What.” His eyes darted around at their audience. “Can I talk to Sehun for a minute?”

Nobody moved.

“Please,” Baekhyun stressed, and Sehun glanced at his friends, giving them a nod. They reluctantly withdrew from the metal struts, and Chanyeol stood up just as reluctantly.

Baekhyun waited until they were out of earshot, halfway across the gym, then scooted closer to Sehun. “What do you mean? They came after you because they heard us in the bathroom?”

“That’s exactly what I mean,” Sehun confirmed. “Have they come after you?”

“No.” Baekhyun whistled through his teeth. “Holy shit. They did a number on you.”

“No shit.” Sehun put an arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and pulled him closer. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

Baekhyun hugged him back gingerly. “I’m glad _you’re_ okay,” he said in awe. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea they were that bad.”

Sehun shrugged helplessly. “What can you do?”

“Well, I wouldn’t have screamed your name so loudly, for starters,” Baekhyun admitted. “That probably didn’t help. Maybe they didn’t know it was me?”

Sehun stiffened. Maybe they _didn’t_ know it was him. Maybe he led them right to him. “Shit,” he whispered. “You should stay away from me.”

“Oh, please. You couldn’t stay away from me if you tried.”

“It’s not like that.” Sehun pulled away. “I’m not blaming you. It’s just so that they don’t find out.”

“Oh.” Baekhyun sat back. “…oh.”

“I need to go.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll see you later.”

Baekhyun smiled. “Yeah, you will.”

“Look out for yourself,” Sehun warned. “Don’t talk back to them like you did last time. Just run.”

Baekhyun sighed. “Okay, if that makes you happy.”

Sehun pointed at his face. “Does it look like this makes me happy?”

“Point taken,” Baekhyun conceded. “I’ll be careful. Chanyeol will protect me, anyway.”

“Yeah, I guess he will.” Sehun crawled out without another word.

“Bye,” Baekhyun waved.

Sehun limped over to where his friends were waiting. Chanyeol looked uncharacteristically serious.

“Are you good?” Luhan asked warily. “Do we need to speak to him?”

“Hey, what do you mean by that?” Chanyeol demanded.

Luhan looked at him in surprise. “…Nothing,” he mumbled, taking a step back.

“No, leave him alone,” Sehun said tiredly. “He hasn’t done anything wrong.” He turned to a frowning Chanyeol. “Watch out for him.”

“I will.” Chanyeol started to walk back to Baekhyun. “I always do,” he muttered as he passed.

Sehun felt guilty. He really needed to stop overreacting over the smallest things. Chanyeol was more than capable of looking after himself. And he’d already known that Chanyeol was always watching out for Baekhyun. He was always fiercely and irrationally protective of the people he cared about.

“Um,” he squeaked, acutely aware of his older friends waiting on him. “Everything’s fine. I guess we can… eat now…”

“Sehun,” Kris sighed, then shook his head. “Never mind. You’re right. Let’s go eat.”

 

*

 

“I feel like we haven’t hung out in forever,” Tao announced as he, Kyungsoo, Sehun and Chanyeol wandered down the road to Kyungsoo’s house. “We barely even have lunch together anymore.”

“I had lunch with you today,” Kyungsoo pointed out.

Tao rolled his eyes. “I meant all of us together,” he clarified, “Sehun’s always hanging out with Kris Wu and Chanyeol is always running off after Baekhyun somewhere.”

They all turned to look at Chanyeol, but Chanyeol just hummed and nodded.

“What, no comeback?” Sehun gasped. “Chanyeol, this is like you’re taking your relationship to the next level.”

Chanyeol just smiled shyly, and Tao shrieked. “ARE YOU? ARE YOU ACTUALLY?” he clapped his hands excitedly.

Sehun had absolutely no intention of telling anyone that he had fucked Baekhyun again. He was starting to feel overwhelmed by his friends’ blind willingness to rush to his defense, even at their own expense. It was probably better if he kept the more complicated aspects of his life to himself. He and Baekhyun, in particular, were so far from black and white, and he didn’t even know what was going on with Jongin recently. That was to say, of course, that if Baekhyun and Chanyeol did start officially going out, he would stop relations with Baekhyun immediately. But for now, it could be his dirty little secret. That was the easiest way.

“No,” Chanyeol was replying to Tao, “I mean, we’re not going out. No way. I’ve just come to terms with my own feelings.”

“What do you mean, ‘no way’?” Kyungsoo scoffed. “It’s going to happen.”

“Maybe one day.” Chanyeol was blushing over his broad grin. “I mean, I do like him. And if it’s okay with Sehun…”

“Wait, what? Me?” Sehun pointed at himself in shock. “What are you talking about?”

“Well, I can’t date someone you hate,” Chanyeol reasoned.

“I don’t hate him,” Sehun argued. “Why would that matter, anyway? You’ve had a crush on Baekhyun since you first set eyes on him.”

“That was before he started spreading rumors about you.”

Sehun shrugged “What’s true is not a rumor. I’m over it.”

Chanyeol shook his arm. “You’d really be okay with it?”

“Are you asking my permission?” Sehun laughed. He was getting quite good at hiding things. He wasn’t sure he liked that about himself. “Am I your father?”

“Yes.”

Sehun took Chanyeol’s hand in both of his own and angled his head down, peering up at Chanyeol as though over spectacles. “Chanyeol, my boy, you have my blessing to wed any person of your choosing,” he said lovingly. “As long as they have money, of course. And they come from a good family.” He amended with an air of stating the obvious.

Chanyeol scrunched up his face and pulled his hand free. “Yeah, no. Ew. I don’t want you to be my dad.”

They all laughed as they reached Kyungsoo’s mom’s apartment and the shorter boy stepped in front to unlock the door to the building.

“Are you making cookies for us today, Kyungsoo?” Chanyeol asked eagerly as they stepped into the lift.

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “Alright, just because you asked so nicely,” he agreed, and Chanyeol cheered, giving him a tight hug.

“Kyungsoo, you’re the best!”

Kyungsoo nodded. “Yes, I am.”

They exited the lift with excited teenage boy noise, Kyungsoo waving at them to quiet down and not disturb his neighbors as he unlocked his apartment door. His friends dumped their bags and shoes unceremoniously on the shelves by the door, then went straight to the kitchen bench.

“What would you do without me feeding you?” Kyungsoo sighed, following them to wash his hands in the kitchen sink. “Is this why you’re all so tall? Is this my fault? Have I fed you too much?"

His friends just rolled their eyes, used to this kind of joke.

Tao played with his rings on his fingers, turning to Chanyeol and Sehun. “In any case, because we haven’t had a chat in ages, what’s new with you guys?” he asked. “Sehun you’ve been super secretive with what you’re doing with the Seniors lately. We tell them everything! Why do they never tell us stuff about you?”

“Because they don’t live off gossip?” Sehun suggested jokingly.

“Well that’s not it,” Chanyeol rolled his eyes back.

“Fair enough.” Sehun smiled. “Well, I mean… I’m feeling better about being a complete slut these days.”

“You’ve never been a complete slut, Sehun,” Kyungsoo sighed, pulling mixing bowls and baking ingredients out of his cupboards. “You don’t need to keep putting yourself down like that.”

“No, it’s okay,” Sehun shrugged. “That’s what I’m saying. I don’t care anymore. I’ll happily be a slut from now on.”

Tao spun one of his rings on the bench, making a really annoying metallic screeching noise. “That’s great, Sehun,” he said with feeling. “To be honest, you’ve always been way too sensitive about this stuff. There’s nothing wrong with a romp every now and then.”

“Yeah, I just realized that!” Sehun grinned. “Thanks, Tao.”

“So who have you been ‘romping’ with?” Chanyeol asked, intrigued. “Kris Wu? Tell me it’s Kris Wu.”

Tao pouted.

“No, no.” Sehun shook his head. “I haven’t actually slept with anyone since…” he made a weird hand gesture in Chanyeol’s direction and Tao cleared his throat awkwardly. “Just a bit of kissing here and there.”

Chanyeol flapped his wrist, repeatedly slamming his hand on the table. “With who, though?” he demanded. “Sehun I _gots to know_.”

Sehun sighed. “I’ve already told Kyungsoo, but…” he smiled shyly suddenly, and Tao squealed with joy. “It was… Luhan and Jongdae.”

Chanyeol and Tao’s faces froze. “Wait, _huh_?” they both chorused.

“ _Luhan_?” Tao repeated in disbelief.

“Who the hell is Jongdae?” Chanyeol added.

“What’s so surprising about that?” Sehun demanded. “And Chanyeol, you met Jongdae — at the bleachers, you know, the kid from the snooty private school.”

“Kyungsoo, you knew about this?” Tao called across the kitchen where Kyungsoo was beating cookie batter.

“Of course I did,” Kyungsoo scoffed. “You know Sehun likes me best.”

“That’s a lie, he likes me best!” Tao whined. “Sehun, you like me best right? Sehun, it’s me, right? I’m your favourite? Sehun? Sehun! Answer me!”

“You’re my least favourite,” Sehun deadpanned. “I barely even like you.”

“ _No! I’m your favourite_!” Tao screeched, reaching around Chanyeol to hit Sehun on the shoulder.

“Tao, stop changing the subject!” Chanyeol roared. “I need to hear more about Sehun kissing _Luhan_.”

“What’s to tell? I went to Jongdae’s place, we had a lot to drink, I made out with him for a couple of hours.”

“ _A couple of hours?_ ” all three of Sehun’s friends yelled. Kyungsoo stopped cooking to stare at him, slack-jawed.

“And I still don’t know who Jongdae is!” Tao added.

Sehun swirled a finger over the bench top. He was thoroughly enjoying holding control of the conversation. Time to blow their tiny minds. “Jongdae is Yixing’s boyfriend.”

Chanyeol and Tao’s mouths fell open.

Sehun let them suffer in speechlessness for a few heartbeats. “It’s not like that,” he finally explained. “Yixing and Jongdae have an arrangement. Everybody in that group kisses Jongdae on the regular.”

“Wow,” Tao leaned his head on his hand. “You really have embraced the slut life.”

Sehun nodded proudly. “I’m having a great time.”

“It’s like I don’t even know you,” Kyungsoo stated, beginning to scoop spoonfuls of cookie dough onto a baking tray. “I feel like we aren’t even the worst influences on your life anymore.”

“Well I like him like this,” Tao announced. “A happy Sehun is a good Sehun, I always say.”

“You have never said that ever in your entire life.”

“I’m saying it now, shut up.”

Sehun snorted. “I want to hear about you guys, though,” he changed the subject. “You’ve all still been pretty much hanging out while I’ve been ditching you for cooler dudes. What’s the pleb life like?”

“Oh,” Chanyeol sat up straight, sneering. “Are you better than us now, Sehun?”

Sehun sneered right back. “Are you denying it?”

“Just remember we have your middle school photos!” Chanyeol warned. “They can and will be used against you. This group has a lifetime membership. Don’t you forget it.”

Sehun relaxed into a grin, dropping his sarcastic superiority. “I would never,” he conceded, slipping his left hand into Chanyeol’s and patting the back of it lightly with his right. “And take a leaf from your own book, dickhead. Don’t change the subject. Tell me about the pleb life.”

Tao groaned. “You don’t know what you’ve been missing, not listening to this guy pine after Baekhyun,” he complained. “Don’t make me hear it again. I’ll be sick.”

“Now you have to tell me.”

Chanyeol huffed. “I do not pine.”

“You pine,” Kyungsoo piped up.

“Hey, who asked you?”

“Chanyeol! Story!”

“Okay, okay, damn you’re bossy,” Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “Baekhyun… is a mad flirt. And he’s a _tease_. He like, freaking knows exactly when I want him and ignores me right at that moment. And then the rest of the time, he treats me like his best friend, he acts all cute on me, he makes me buy him food, he makes me walk him to class, he—”

“Wait, wait,” Sehun patted Chanyeol’s hand again to make him stop. “He _makes_ you buy him food and walk him to class? That doesn’t sound like the Chanyeol I know. Are you sure you’re not begging him to let you do those things for him?”

“Hey, I can play hard to get as good as anyone,” Chanyeol protested.

“No, you fucking can’t, you loser,” Sehun snorted. “Last I checked, you’d pledged your life to his service.”

“Do you want to hear this story, or are you writing it on your own?” Chanyeol demanded.

“I’m sorry.”

“A greater lie has never been told,” Tao interjected.

Chanyeol waved at him to shut up. “For your information, he does stuff for me, too.”

“In real life, or in your fantasies? _Ow_.”

“Violence is not the answer,” Kyungsoo called out.

“You hit us more than anyone!” Tao complained, rubbing his arm.

“Will you all shut up! I want to hear what Baekhyun does for Chanyeol!”

“You guys are all perverted! He just helps me with my homework!” Chanyeol wailed. “He’s really good at math! He explains things in ways I understand! He gives me pills when I have headaches! That is the end of my story!” he fell back in his chair, letting out an incredibly overdramatic sigh of relief. “Thank God that’s over.”

“Far from it,” Sehun shook his head. “How does he help you with homework? Does he whisper the answers in your ear? Does he come up behind you and take your hand and guide you to the correct solution like in the dramas? Does he give you blowjobs when you get all the answers right?”

“Whoa,” Chanyeol jerked his chin at Sehun defiantly. “Are you describing me or you right now, huh?” he retorted.

Sehun closed his eyes and groaned. “Chanyeol used AIR DIRTY LAUNDRY! It’s super effective!” he slammed a hand into his heart. “A fatal blow!”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Chanyeol snorted and turned his head back to the kitchen. “You really lost all your shame, huh.”

“Do you miss it?” Sehun teased. “Sad you can’t make me stutter anymore?”

Chanyeol stuck out his tongue. “It’s alright, I can always pick on Tao,” he shrugged.

“Hey—”

“Speaking of,” Chanyeol continued pointedly, “When are you going to let us sit in on your little posse meetings? Tao’s been busting his ass trying to get in good with Kris Wu, but all they care about is you.”

Tao threw aside all shame, leaning forward on the bench. “Yeah, Sehun, what gives? Hook a brother up!”

Sehun sucked in a breath through his teeth. “Hm, I don’t know, Tao,” he said sadly. “I don’t know if I can introduce you to Yifan. I have a reputation to uphold, you know? My seal of approval has some worth right now, and if I give it to you…” he trailed off.

“You’re a _bitch_ ,” Tao whined. “Sehuuuuuuun, introduce meeeeeeeeee, you owe meeeeeeeee,” he cajoled.

“I _owe_ you?” Sehun chortled. “For _what_?”

Tao snapped his fingers and pointed. “Because, remember that first day when Luhan invited you to sit with them? You didn’t want to go! And I made you go! So in actual fact,” he swung his index finger between Chanyeol and himself. “All of this is because of us.”

“He has a point,” Chanyeol nodded earnestly. Kyungsoo put the cookies in the oven and sat down on the other side of the bench, resting his chin in his hands to watch them with quiet fascination. “Everything you have, I dare say, is due to us.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Sehun let go of Chanyeol’s hand and held both palms up in defense. “What the hell is this? You said you’d pick on him!” he pointed at Tao.

“Yeah, and you said I _couldn’t_ pick on you anymore. So who’s the real winner here?”

“You guys fucking _suck_ ,” Sehun groaned. “Except Kyungsoo.” He stretched across the counter to grasp at Kyungsoo’s wrists. “You’re on my side, right Kyungsoo? Kyungsoo? Say you’re on my side. Protect me.”

Kyungsoo just hummed absently. “Sorry, I don’t speak Korean.”

“ _Kyungsoo_!”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to post at such a weird time! I was at work today but I wanted to get it posted before tomorrow so I can get back on schedule!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“You’re hard to hate.”_
> 
> _“I’m not.” Baekhyun stated flatly. “You just don’t know what’s good for you.”_
> 
> _“That’s why you want me.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: M

 

 

 

_hey_

Sehun sighed. He’d known Jongin for months now and the single word text still made him jumpy.

_What’s up?_

_i was looking thru dance covers on youtube just now_

Sehun hesitated. Was this a casual catch-up? Was he forgiven? Was Jongin ready to be his friend again?

_And?_

_found somethin interesting_

O… kay…?

_What was it?_

_from user OhSeHunDred_

Oh. _Shit_.

_JONGIN DO NOT_

_YOU WERE SOOOOOOOO CUTE_

_YOU SAW NOTHING. NOOOOTHINGGGG_

_BABY SEHUN COVERING SORRY SORRY OHHHH MY GODDDDDD_

_THAT WAS NOT ME_

_WHAT WERE U LIKE THIRTEEN?_

_SHUT UP SHUT THE FUCK UP_

_I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO HAPPY IN MY ENTIRE LIFE_

_I HATE YOU_

_but_  
_u kno_  
_my fav_  
_was definitely  
_ _the snsdcover_

_I HATE YOU SO MUCH_

_UR ACTUALLY GOOD THO_

Sehun actually wanted to die when he suddenly saw a email notification pop up on his phone screen.

_DID YOU JUST FUCKING SUSBSCRIBE_

_PLS RELEASE MORE QUALITY CONTENT SOON XOXOXOXOXOXO_

_YOU ABSOLUTE DICKHEAD_

_BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA_

_NEVER TALK TO ME AGAIN_

_*_

There was no way in hell Sehun was going back to school. Not with Jongin having found out his old YouTube channel. No. way.

“What do I do,” he screeched at Chanyeol over the phone. “If he sees me I will die. I will _literally die, Chanyeol._ ”

“Don't be so dramatic,” Chanyeol said breezily, still sniffling a little from crying in laughter. “You were a good dancer back in the day.”

“ _Have you seen those videos Chanyeol holy shit I can’t face him I cannot._ ”

“Yeah, dude, I watch those videos on the regular.”

“I hate you.”

“You love me.”

“I should have deleted that channel years ago.”

“No!” Chanyeol suddenly yelled. “You one million percent cannot delete that channel, Sehun!”

“Oh? Why the hell not?”

“Because it is the thing _dearest to my heart_ ,” Chanyeol gasped. “Do you really want to be the one to take my happiness away? Do you want to be responsible for that?”

“You are the worst."

“You’ll be the worst if I never smile again!”

“I’m hanging up.”

“I’ll see you at school! _I love you_!”

 

*

 

Despite his humiliation, Sehun still had to go to math class. As per their agreement, Baekhyun ignored him completely. Jongin, however, had no such reservations. Sehun slowed as he approached, noticing that Jongin had legitimately switched seats with the kid who usually sat beside him, in order to gaze at him with an ear-to-ear grin without turning around.

“Say a single word, Jongin, and I will end you.”

Jongin was physically shaking with the strain of holding back his laughter. Sehun slammed his books down on his desk. “I will literally break your legs.”

“Dude,” Jongin spluttered.

Sehun brandished a pencil at him threateningly. “Another word and I’ll kill you.”

“ _Dude_.”

“I swear to god, Jongin.”

Jongin clasped his hands together and offered up a silent prayer. “I’m cool with God. You were saying?”

“I hate you.”

“You don’t hate me.”

“I _hate_ you.”

“You love me more than anyone.”

“ _Fuck_ off.”

 

*

 

“So, are you coming down to the dance studio with me?” Jongin asked after class as Sehun packed up his books.

Sehun punched him in the arm.  
  
“Ow! For real! You haven’t come to watch me dance in like, a week. How am I supposed to practice without my number one fan?”

“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me.”

Jongin laughed, slinging an arm around Sehun’s shoulders so he couldn’t escape. “Wait, though — how is this relationship supposed to work? How can you be my number one fan if I’m your number one fan?”

Sehun groaned, giving up. “Kill me. Just fucking kill me.”

“Come on, nerd,” Jongin snickered, pulling Sehun in the direction of the studio. “Come support me.”

 

*

 

“I have bad news,” Luhan announced as soon as Jongin and Sehun entered the dance studio.

“Oh no, what?” Jongin groaned.

“Yixing has to do a thing with his boyfriend on the 17th of July,” Luhan sighed.

Sehun frowned. Since when did Luhan come to the dance studio? And why was he all sweaty? Had he been practicing?

“Oh, what,” Jongin moaned, slumping and almost pulling Sehun to the floor. “He can’t get out of it at all?”

“Even if he could, he wouldn’t,” Luhan rolled his eyes. “Have you _seen_ his boyfriend? Would you seriously tell the hottest guy on the planet that ‘no, sorry, I can’t come to a fancy ass event with you tonight, I have a dance contest’?”

Dance contest…?

Jongin hummed, and to Sehun the world seemed to slip into slow motion as his friend turned around to look at him.

_Oh, no_.

“Actually, I might have a solution,” Jongin stated.

“No,” Sehun said immediately.

“Sehun,” Jongin began.

“No.”

“How would you,”

“No,”

“Like to,”

“No, no, no, no,”

“Join me and Luhan,”

“ _No, no, no, no_ ,”

“Competing at a showcase next month?”

“ _NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO_ ,”

“Am I missing something…?” Luhan cocked his head through Sehun’s incessant drone of ‘no’s.

“SEHUN HAS A DANCE COVER YOUTUBE CHANNEL,” Jongin yelled, as Sehun’s chant dissolved into a scream and he hurled himself onto Jongin to cover his mouth, too late.

Luhan perked up immediately.

“WHAT?” he cried out.

“I DO NOT I DON’T JONGIN IS LYING.”

Luhan had already whipped out his phone. “Jongin, what do I search?” he demanded, furiously tapping on the side of his phone as his browser opened. “I need to see this.”

“His username is—” Sehun stiffened his fingers over his mouth and Jongin struggled to pry them off, “Just search his name,” he spluttered, smearing saliva over Sehun’s hand.

“ _No!_ ” Sehun squawked, letting go of Jongin and flying across the room to try to confiscate Luhan’s phone. Luhan brought up a foot, planting it on Sehun’s chest and keeping him at bay while he stretched his arms over his head and typed furiously into the search bar.

“He was _so_ little,” Jongin goaded, leaning back against the wall with a horrendously self-satisfied grin. “Luhan, you _have_ to see it.”

“ _That’s really not necessary,_ ” Sehun announced brusquely, his calm tone opposing his frantic scrambles, “Luhan, I would really appreciate borrowing that phone for a second.”

“Is this it? _‘Oh Sehun — No Other (Super Junior Dance Cover)’_?” Luhan poked his screen and suddenly screamed. “ _Oh my god, Sehun, you were tiny_ ,”

Sehun gave up. He slumped away from Luhan, curling up in a ball on the dance studio floor with his hands over his face. “Kill me.”

“Hey, you’re actually good,” Luhan said in astonishment. “Sehun, this is awesome!”

“Kill me.”

“I told you,” Jongin told the still mess that was Sehun on the floor. “So will you dance with us?”

“Yeah!” Luhan was still watching the damn video. “Please, Sehun! We were really looking forward to this showcase!”

“Kill me.”

“Come on.” Jongin shuffled over on his knees, poking Sehun’s side. “It’s destiny. I found your channel yesterday, and suddenly today Yixing can’t make the show? It was meant to be.”

“I’m dead.”

“Get up, nerd.” Jongin grabbed Sehun’s arm and tried to haul him upright. “We’ll teach you the choreo.”

“Can’t. Dead.”

“Sehun, please?” Luhan begged, also crawling over. “I saw on the sidebar you did U-KISS’s Neverland, too. I love that dance. You’re really good.”

“Kill me again.”

“I really want to dance with you now,” Luhan whined, shaking Sehun’s arm. “Sehunnnnnnnnnn let us dance with youuuuuuuuuuu.”

Sehun reluctantly raised his bright red face. Jongin cheered. “Are you taking the piss?”

“No!” Luhan protested. “I’m serious! Please dance with us.”

Sehun stared for a long moment at Luhan’s earnest pout. “I’ll try,” he relented.

“YES,” Jongin punched the air. “Hell yeah! I’m so excited. Let’s start! I have a request, though.”

“What is it?”

“When we’re done, you put footage of the contest on your channel. _Ahh, no! Violence is not the answer! Luhan! Help_!”

 

*

 

Sehun stretched out on Baekhyun’s bed, all six feet of bare, pale skin and sore muscles. He sighed happily and Baekhyun snickered, wandering back from the bathroom and flopping down next to him.

“Satisfied?”

“Mm-hmm,” Sehun hummed, pushing his hand under Baekhyun’s neck and pressing his palm to his shoulder.

Baekhyun poked at his nipple and Sehun whined. “Noo, don’t,” he pouted, halfheartedly pushing his hand away. Baekhyun giggled, patting Sehun’s chest lightly.

“I’m glad you came to study with me.”

“What were we studying, again?”

“Biology. Duh.”

“Right.”

“Are you good? You happy?”

Sehun thought about the question for a moment. “Yeah,” he replied finally. “I think so.”

“Good enough.” Baekhyun closed his eyes, cheekily puffing out air over Sehun’s nipple.

“ _Stop_ ,” Sehun flicked his head. “I’m so done right now.”

“Aww,” Baekhyun retreated, lightly toying with Sehun’s bellybutton instead. “Can I do this?”

“Yeah, alright.” Sehun shifted deeper into Baekhyun’s amazingly plush pillows. “You weirdo.”

“Well, you like me, so…”

“So what?”

“So you’re into weird things.”

Sehun groaned. “You’re so embarrassing.”

Baekhyun just made a satisfied noise, his free hand curling gently, knuckles grazing Sehun’s side.

“We should talk about Chanyeol, though.”

“Should we?”

“Don’t play dumb.”

“Yeah, okay.” Baekhyun opened his eyes, but kept playing with Sehun’s stomach. “What do you want to talk about?”

“Do you like him?”

“Yeah.”

“In what way?”

“I don’t know.”

Sehun sighed. “He really likes you.”

“I know that.”

“He’s going to ask you out one day.”

“I know.”

“Would you say yes?”

Baekhyun didn’t miss a beat. “Yeah. I would.”

Sehun turned his head, gazing down at Baekhyun’s hair. “I see.”

“But like. That’s why this is so important to me now, you know?” Baekhyun ran his index finger up Sehun’s thigh, over his hipbone and back down the other thigh.

“What do you mean?”

“Like you, you know, you’re horny, you’re available, and you don’t love me. I like having sex with you. It doesn’t mean anything.”

“Yeah, and?”

“And Chanyeol is in love with me. I’m not stupid. He’s completely head over heels for me. He’s monogamous as all get out, he’s incredibly protective, and when he feels things, he feels them _hard_.”

“If you don’t want that, why would you want to say yes to him?” Sehun frowned.

“Because I _do_ want that. And I want it with him. But not _now_.”

Sehun said nothing.

“If I’d met him like… next year, maybe. Maybe that would be all fine. But I’m scared now.” Baekhyun sighed, hiding his face under Sehun’s arm. “If I date him, I’m with him for the long haul. If I date him, there’s no way out without breaking his heart. And that’s fine. I’m fine with that. I want that, I really, really do. But I’m not ready.”

Sehun chewed on his lips. He kind of wished Baekhyun didn’t make sense.

“I know you don’t want to get involved,” Baekhyun continued. “But I also know that you’re addicted, if not to me, then to fucking with me. I know you _wish_ you could leave me alone. But you can’t. Because you’re the same as me. You want to be loyal. You want to be a good friend. You don’t want to hurt him. But here we are.” He paused for a second, and Sehun focused on his warm breath on his bare skin. “I tried to find someone else to mess around with, so I could leave _you_ alone. But fuck, Sehun,” he sighed. “All of the gay kids in this damn school are connected to you. They’re all so incredibly in love with you that they want nothing to do with me.”

Sehun’s breath caught. _From what gossip I’ve gathered, Baekhyun either slept with, or tried to sleep with, Kris,_ Kyungsoo said in his head, and Luhan added _we’re launching a group-wide boycott of Baekhyun._ He was stuck in this, whether he wanted to be involved or not.

“It’s not that they’re in love with me,” he protested anyway. “They just have better morals than we do.”

“I’m not denying that your friends are good people, but don’t kid yourself that they don’t love you.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Please.” Baekhyun scoffed. “Every time you fuck up, all they do is worry about you. I’m not calling you a bad person, or anything. You’re a regular teenage guy. You act out. You talk without thinking. You do things you wish you hadn’t done. But they _never_ get mad at you. They always see things from your point of view and try to help you. Have you noticed that? No teenager is that empathetic, let alone a whole handful of queer kids who have their own shit to deal with. They _adore_ you.”

Sehun could feel the weight of Baekhyun’s words settle uncomfortably on his stomach. “Where’d you learn to speak like this?” he asked, instead of confronting his emotions. “How did you learn to read people like that?”

Baekhyun’s mood seemed to change suddenly. There was a weird glint in his eyes as he sat up and gestured widely around at his enormous bedroom. “Do you think a family with this much influence could abide having a gay son?” he demanded. “Do you think parents with this much money love their children? Do you think I wouldn’t be kicked out on the street without so much as a ‘see you later’ if they had any, _any_ clue who I am?” he snapped his head around to stare at Sehun with angry tears welling in his eyes. “Me and my brother… we’re just pawns in their ridiculous little social games. Reading people is survival. Being able to ascertain a person’s mood by the slightest gesture, the tiniest expression, is the only way to get by.”

“I’m sorry,” Sehun whispered, sitting up as well and carefully placing his hand on Baekhyun’s leg. “I’m sorry, Baekhyun.”

“Did I fucking _ask_ you to be sorry?” Baekhyun snapped, but he pushed his thigh further into Sehun’s palm. “God, you’re so _annoying_.”

Sehun pushed forward onto his knees, wrapping his arms around Baekhyun’s shoulders. Baekhyun’s chin trembled as he slid into his lap and hugged back, sniffling angrily into his shoulder. Sehun rubbed his back comfortingly, pressing his cheek into Baekhyun’s hair. Baekhyun reached down, fingers curling around Sehun’s soft cock.

“Don’t,” Sehun whispered. “You don’t have to.”

“I do have to.” Baekhyun pulled back, just enough to mash his lips against Sehun’s. Sehun kissed him back, carefully, shivering as Baekhyun’s hands roamed over his skin and sent tingles through his veins. “Isn’t that what you’re here for?” he asked, kneading the heels of his hands into Sehun’s thighs and rubbing his hipbones with his thumbs. “So we can use each other?”

“You can use me,” Sehun murmured.

“Don’t pity me,” Baekhyun ordered coldly, roughly shoving his tongue into Sehun’s mouth. “Don't look at me like that. Don’t talk to me like that.” He ran his finger over the sensitive skin of Sehun's perineum, and Sehun shivered again, letting out a small noise. “You don’t owe me shit. I’m the one who _doesn’t_ love you.”

“You’re hard to hate.”

“I’m not.” Baekhyun stated flatly. “You just don’t know what’s good for you.”

“That’s why you want me.”

“Right.” Baekhyun nodded; his eyes were dry, but his face was blank. “So are you going to let me have you, or what?”

“Yeah,” Sehun agreed, pulling Baekhyun down to kiss him on the pillows.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we gooooo~~  
> I like these next few chapters a lot ;;  
> Hope you guys are having fun on this journey with me~  
> Also does anyone know how to stop the damn total chapter count from going back to (?) every time you update smh


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Sehun didn’t think he had ever been as nervous as now, with Yixing watching and assessing his skill. He felt horribly inadequate, but tried to keep an eye on his own movements as he danced through his part. It was Luhan and Jongin’s responsibility to keep equidistant from him for now. All he had to do was keep precise to himself and the beat._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: G

 

 

 

Sehun stretched, face on his knees, hands securely clasping his feet. It _hurt_. He’d been running on the track team for almost two years, but having sex with Baekhyun, and dance practices with Jongin and Luhan had awakened muscles he’d forgotten about, especially in his waist and back.

High pitched laughter was his only warning before strong hands slammed down on his shoulder blades, shoving his face further down between his legs.

“ _OW,_ ” he yelled, whipping around and knocking whoever it was out of the way, finding himself staring into Hyeri and Krystal’s laughing faces. “Oh my god,” he whined. “Why would you do that.”

“I’m helping you stretch,” Hyeri snickered, leaning back on her arms. Sehun groaned. He didn’t talk to the girls much outside of track practice, but on the team they were good friends.

Krystal pulled her leg back behind her body, holding the position with perfect balance. Sehun’s school was forced to split into the boys’ and girls’ team for meets, but on campus, everyone practiced together. Everyone was pushed to the same standards. Their boys’ team was good, but their girls’ team unrelentingly smashed the competition.

“You were slipping today,” Krystal noted, pulling up her other leg. “The coach is not very happy with you.”

“I know,” Sehun groaned. It was no secret that the coach, and many of the boys, did not like him very much. He’d joined track after quitting dance to seem a little more manly, but the effect was just that he turned out to be the most effeminate guy in a sport full of ex-football players, creeps who were into athletic girls, and tomboys. The coach often accused him of ‘not being a team player’ whenever he opted out of after-practice meetings, team dinners and post-contest celebrations. He was pretty sure that if he wasn’t actually good, the coach would have bullied him out by now.

“Just saying,” Krystal dropped her leg and held up her hands in surrender. “He’s out for blood. You’d better at least meet your best time next week. You know what he’s like about constant improvement.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Sehun straightened up, doing some half-hearted leg lifts. Hyeri stretched her triceps behind the back of her head. “I’m just like… I’m having trouble caring about track these days.”

“Fair enough.” Hyeri nodded.

“You’re good, but you’ve never really been a part of the team,” Krystal agreed, slinging both arms behind her back.

“Wow, thanks.”

Krystal snorted. “It’s true. I like you and all, but it’s really obvious you hate everyone here.”

“We’re surprised you lasted this long, to be honest,” Hyeri shrugged, shaking out the last of her kinks and pinning back a stray piece of hair. “Anyway, I assume you aren’t coming to eat with us now?"

“No, I actually have another practice to go to,” Sehun admitted, standing up and dusting off his pants.

“Oh, really? I didn’t know you were part of any other sports teams,” Hyeri said in surprise, looking him up and down. “What is it? Tennis? Swimming?”

“Nah. Dance, actually.”

“Oh, really? My sister used to do that, before she went off to university,” Krystal commented. “They used to meet a lot. Like three or four times a week.”

“I’m not part of the school crew,” Sehun admitted. “My friend just asked me to help out with a competition.”

“Wow, you’re competition level? I had no idea,” Krystal raised her eyebrows. “That’s kind of cool.”

“It’s not like that,” Sehun shrugged, blushing a little. “I haven’t danced in years. I’m super rusty.”

“Please, don’t be modest,” Hyeri scoffed. “You got invited to compete, for crying out loud. Who are you dancing with?”

“Just some friends. Luhan, from third year, and Jongin, from ours.”

“Oh, that asshole.” Hyeri snorted.

“Oh yeah, that’s right, you used to date.” Sehun had forgotten Hyeri used to go out with Jongin at the beginning of first year. “Sorry, shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“Nah, you’re right.” Hyeri flapped a hand. “I don’t waste my time feeling bad about _him_. You have fun, though.” She picked up her bag, tying her sweatshirt to the strap.

“Yeah. Hey,” Krystal added, “Let me know when the contest is. I might be interested to come watch.”

Hyeri gasped in fake outrage. “You bitch, you’re going to go cheer on my ex?”

“Please,” Krystal rolled her eyes, reaching up her elbow to lean on Sehun’s shoulder. “I’m just going to go support our friend, here.”

“Aw, thanks, buddy,” Sehun gave her a brief side hug back, then pulled away. “It’s in the summer break, I’ll let you know. I am going to be late, though. See you guys on Monday.”

“Yeah, later, Sehun.”

“Bye!”

 

*

 

The music was already playing as Sehun approached the dance studio. He poked his head in, and Luhan rocketed off where he had been sitting on the floor, screaming “ _Hello carrot!_ ”

“Hey, Luhan,” Sehun replied absently, rubbing Luhan’s hair, but his eyes were transfixed on Jongin and Yixing dancing in the middle of the room. The two of them were doing choreo that Sehun hadn’t seen before, but it was definitely the song that Luhan and Jongin had asked him to do with them. Sehun had never seen Yixing like this before. His face was stern with concentration, his dimple gone, and he moved like Jongin — fluid yet precise, exuding a sense of control, far different from the sweet, slightly ditzy aura he usually had. He and Jongin moved back-to-back, circling for four beats, their steps measured to be the exact same as each other’s.

“Do you not need me anymore?” Sehun asked Luhan.

“No, of course we do!” Luhan protested. “It’s just that Yixing was writing our choreography, and he hasn’t finished yet, so he’s here to teach us some more today.” He glanced up at Sehun’s expression. “Why? You don’t want to back out, do you?”

Yixing and Jongin locked arms for a moment, then Jongin dropped to his knees, skidding across the floor to the left and Yixing took a couple of steps to the right, leaving a space in the middle that Sehun could only assume Luhan would fill. They danced in mirror image for the next few bars. Their chemistry was impeccable. There was no way that Sehun could step into those shoes.

Luhan pouted at his lack of reply, also turning his attention to the two boys dancing. Jongin stopped dancing a few beats later, catching his breath while Yixing kept going.

“Slow down, pony,” Jongin commented when Yixing showed no sign of stopping. “Let the rest of us catch up. You haven’t taught me that far.”

Yixing fell short, stumbling to a halt. He smiled, and the dorky Yixing Sehun knew suddenly appeared on his face. “Sorry,” he laughed, hitting pause on the sound system and finally turning around to greet Sehun. “Hey, Sehun! I hear you’re going to replace me.”

“Uh,” was all Sehun could say.

“Wow, Yixing,” Jongin rolled his eyes. “Way to put him under pressure.”

The comment stung a little. Not even Jongin, who’d practically begged him to dance, thought he would be able to measure up to Yixing. But, Sehun sighed to himself inwardly, he supposed he couldn’t blame him. It was true.

“I’ll do my best,” he murmured awkwardly, feeling very orange. He pushed his hoodie off his head, shaking a hand through his hair to fluff the volume back into it. It was still a little sweaty from track.

“You’ll do great!” Luhan cheered from below his shoulder, closing the studio door and trotting back to the center of the room. “Come on, Yixing, catch Sehun up.”

“You’ve got your work cut out for you,” Jongin warned, rubbing the back of his neck. “I think Yixing’s a little too innovative even for me.”

Sehun did not appreciate his modesty. He had _just_ seen Jongin nail those moves.

“Do you need to warm up?” Yixing asked, shoving his hands in his pockets. Sehun noticed he’d swapped out his uniform for a pair of sweats and a loose American Eagle t-shirt. It was so stereotypically typical of a Chinese international student, and Sehun felt a slight smile twinge at the corner of his mouth.

“No, I just came from track, I’m fine,” Sehun shook his head. “Let’s get started. Looks like I have a lot of work to do.”

“Let me see you guys from the top,” Yixing requested, waking up the laptop plugged into the sound system. This choreo is my baby. I’m so excited.”

“Don’t get your expectations up,” Sehun warned, stepping into position behind Jongin and in front of Luhan. He adjusted his legs to be as far apart as Jongin’s, folding his hands in front of his body and lowering his head. He was suddenly grateful that he’d practiced pretty hard since their first practice.

Yixing pressed play, and the low hum of a synthesizer seeped out of the speakers. Jongin sprung into motion in front of him. Sehun joined his movements on beat eight, and eight beats after that, felt Luhan begin behind him. He threw his elbows back, locking his arms, and Luhan grabbed them, throwing himself feet-first across the floor between their legs. Sehun hopped over his head and sprung to the left as Jongin jumped to the right, allowing Luhan to take center as he pushed himself upright and led them into the first verse. They danced in unison for half of the section, then Jongin stepped to front, Luhan spun left and Sehun slid right, mirroring Luhan for Jongin’s spotlight. Sehun caught Yixing’s eye for a split second as the choreographer gazed at them with his lip between his thumb and index knuckle, then snapped his focus back to the mirror and adjusted his position. Jongin turned to him and raised his hand; Sehun grasped it, passing by him to swap into the center.

Sehun didn’t think he had ever been as nervous as now, with Yixing watching and assessing his skill. He felt horribly inadequate, but tried to keep an eye on his own movements as he danced through his part. It was Luhan and Jongin’s responsibility to keep equidistant from him for now. All he had to do was keep precise to himself and the beat. Eventually he took a step and turn to the left, body rolling against Luhan, who laughed at him, drawing a smile from Sehun’s terrified lips, then swapped Luhan back to the center.

And that was all they had so far. He placed a hand over his racing heart while Yixing paused the music again and whooped.

“You guys look amazing!” he cried, slapping his hands to his cheeks. “You seriously have to record the _whole_ thing for me, oh my god I am so excited, you don’t even know.” He fanned himself delightedly. “You guys didn’t tell me Sehun was _amazing_.”

“We did so!” Luhan yelled, putting his hands on his hips. “You were the one who was too much of a non-asshole to watch his videos.”

“You did _not_ show him my videos,” Sehun yelled, his mouth falling open in horror.

“No, sadly, we didn’t,” Luhan grumbled. “He went off on some rant about respecting your dignity or some shit and refused to look.”

Sehun raised a thumbs-up to Yixing. “And that is why Yixing is my favourite,” he declared, and it was Luhan’s turn to gape.

“Can we start already?” Jongin was hopping from leg to leg. “I wanna practice lifting Luhan with Sehun.”

“Wait, what?”

 

*

 

“No,” Luhan whimpered, struggling to keep his feet on the floor as Sehun and Jongin propped his arms up. “No, this is not safe. Put me down.”

“Don’t be such a baby,” Yixing snorted. “This part is going to look sick as fuck when you pull it off.”

“Why in the fuck did you even suggest this,” Luhan whined, and Sehun was tempted to agree. The move involved him and Jongin in a plié-like half-squat, side-by-side, while Luhan hopped up onto their thighs, pulled off some sort of tutting manoeuvre along with Sehun and Jongin’s outside arms, while they held him steady by the knees. For _twenty beats_. They’d forgone teaching Sehun the entirety of the part he’d watched Yixing and Jongin practice when he came in, in favour of working on this _one_ section. It had been ten minutes since they’d stopped practicing the arm movements and started on the pose, and Luhan was still wimping out about entrusting his weight to Sehun’s “skinny chicken legs”.

“Sehun’s legs are fine!” Jongin groaned, “He’s got fucking track muscles, for fuck’s sake. Squeeze them!”

“Or,” Sehun suggested quickly, “You could not do that.”

“ _Luhan just stand on his leg oh my god_ ,” Yixing sighed in Mandarin.

“ _Shut up Yixing you shit egg_ ,” Luhan snapped back. “ _This is all your fault._ ”

“What,” Jongin asked blandly.

Sehun rolled his eyes, straightening out of his squat and kicking his legs a little to ease his quads. “Luhan, I have to say I’m insulted by your aspersions on the strength of my thighs.” He folded his arms. “I didn’t do track for two years to be disrespected like this.”

Luhan pouted, hesitantly eyeing Jongin, who was still holding position. “Are you stuck,” he demanded, and Jongin snorted. He leaned forward, placed his weight on his hands and swung his legs out and around, crossing them in front of his body. It was a small move, but still blatantly showing off.

“Come on, Yixing,” Sehun sighed. “Teach me the rest of the new part while Luhan gets his shit together.”

“Why can’t Sehun be the one in the middle,” Luhan whined.

“Because you’re the shortest,” Yixing shot back. “Do you want him to fall on you? Don’t try to mess up the aesthetics of my dance.”

“Fuck you.”

Yixing ignored him, bringing Sehun closer to the mirror. “Okay, I’ll run you through the second verse. You’re on the left at this point, so you’re going to step forward for four, start a canon sequence for sixteen, then slide back to the center for this tower thing that Luhan’s being a little bitch about.”

“Okay.”

“Cool. So walk forward like this,” Yixing demonstrated, then watched Sehun mimic him. “More in your shoulders. Think swag.”

Sehun snorted but complied, and Yixing nodded. “Great. Then the canon part goes like…” he started dancing, punctuating each shift with a count. “Do it with me.”

They ran through the count five times, slowly getting faster, until Sehun felt more or less like he had it. “I hope I remember this in twenty minutes,” he mumbled.

“You pick stuff up fast,” Yixing shrugged. “Your accuracy needs some work, but that will come when you’re more comfortable with the sequence. I’m seriously impressed."

Sehun scoffed. “What did Jongin pick it up on, his first try?”

“Jongin dances every day,” Yixing said back immediately. “You haven’t danced in years. Of course it’s going to take you longer than him. You can’t compare the path of different things to the same outcome.” He folded his arms. “I watched you do the first part, don’t forget. I don’t know how long for it took you to pick it up. I don’t know how long for you practiced. But you did it, and you did it well. That’s all that matters, in the end.”

Sehun glanced in the mirror and noticed Luhan and Jongin watching them interestedly. 

“This world is obsessed with results,” Yixing continued. “Which sucks, sometimes, like at school, where people ignore your situation whole in favour of the grade on your quiz, that won’t even matter in a few years time. But in this case, it gives you some breath to relax.” He smiled. “We have months until the contest, and you’ve already got a quarter of the choreo finished after one rehearsal. I’m not saying don’t try to be perfection. I made this dance, so obviously I want you to do it good!” he chuckled. “But relax a little. You’ll all be at the same level by the day of. Take the time _you_ need to do it right.”

Across the room, Jongin started to clap slowly.

“Are you drunk right now?” Luhan demanded in contrast. “You’re talking like you do when you’re smashed.”

“ _Shut up_ ,” Yixing rolled his eyes. “ _I’m trying to cheer up Sehun, here, and all you’ve done is make fun of his legs and laugh at the expression he has when he concentrates_.”

Jongin pouted at not being able to understand his comment. Sehun looked down at his hands. Even through Yixing’s slightly dodgy grammar, his message was clear. He felt a bit better.

Yixing reverted back to Korean. “So, should I keep teaching Sehun the verse, or are you ready to try the tower again, you big baby?” he shot at Luhan. “Do I need to give you a pep talk also?”

“No, please no,” Luhan laughed. “Let’s try again.” He grinned at Sehun and cracked his neck. “I’m ready.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I wouldn't give to see them do this choreo honestly


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Sehun looked up at Luhan pathetically. “I can’t get up.”_
> 
> _Luhan held out a hand wordlessly, a slight chuckle escaping his lips. “You big baby.”_
> 
> _“I don’t think I can make it up the stairs.”_
> 
> _“You can. I believe in you.”_
> 
> _“I’ll do my best.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-15

 

 

 

The term wore on. Sehun’s bruises faded. Pollen began to float around in the air, the breeze grew warmer, the days grew longer, and the school halls were a sea of white as everyone abandoned their blazers for the much cooler cotton shirts. Sehun and Tao had birthdays and Kyungsoo baked cakes. Spring track meets approached, the coach grew edgy, and Sehun pushed himself harder and harder to beat his own best times. He continued to practice with Jongin and Luhan, with Yixing beginning to nitpick details leading up to the contest. Drama subsided for now, he fell into routine. He went to track on Monday and Wednesday, had dance practice on Tuesday and Wednesday, went out with Kyungsoo, Tao and Chanyeol on Thursday, had games night with Luhan, Jongdae, Yixing, Kris and Minseok on Friday, then ended his week in Baekhyun’s bed every Sunday after church.

Chanyeol still hadn’t asked him out, so Sehun figured it was okay. He offered up a small apology to Jesus before he left the church, but figured he was already 50/50 either condemned to damnation or not, so it wouldn’t really matter.

He mentioned it finally after a few drinks at Jongdae’s, while Kris frowned between the game pieces on the table and the cards in his hands.

“A girl at school invited me to her family’s beach house in the summer,” Jongdae commented, lying across the couch with Yixing resting against his chest. “It was surreal.”

Minseok whistled. “Yikes.”

Yixing said nothing. He’d probably heard this story before, Sehun figured, but he couldn’t quite read the expression on his friend’s face.

“What did you say?” Luhan asked, nestled under Sehun’s arm.

“I’m 90% sure I just laughed at her,” Jongdae hummed. “I was so thrown. I don’t even spend that much time with her or know her that well.”

“Ouch,” Minseok hissed in through his teeth.

“I mean it’s fairly common knowledge that I don’t do romance,” Jongdae shrugged. “But you haven’t heard the best part. She asked _again_.”

“Oh, _shit_ ,” Luhan drawled. “Then what?”

“I told her I have a boyfriend and there was no way I was going to go on a trip with her.”

“Brutal.”

“Here’s my favourite part.”

“Oh my god.”

“Wanna know what she said to that?”

“Dying to.”

“She said ‘leave him. I’ll take better care of you than you could dream of.”

“She did _not_ ,” Kris looked away from his cards.

“Then, when I laughed at her again, she said ‘You’ll _be_ mine, Kim. Count on it’. Then she took my orange and walked away.”

“She took your orange?”

“Yeah, I was eating an orange, and she just took it right out of my hand.”

“Are you fucking with us right now?” Minseok asked. Yixing started to giggle.

Jongdae held up a hand. “On my life,” he swore. “I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t even try to get my orange back. I was laughing too hard.”

Luhan shook his head. “Rich people have no shame.”

“Like you have shame,” Jongdae stuck out his tongue. “Anyway, I can’t wait to go back to school on Monday and see what she does.”

“That’s bizarre,” Sehun commented, taking a sip of his cider. He still hadn’t gotten into beer, which tasted far too much like sweat for his liking, but the cider was sweet enough for him to move off the sickeningly sugary cruisers.

“Truly,” Jongdae agreed, stretching over the table to roll the dice as Kris murmured a soft ‘Your turn’. “So, what’s happening with the rest of you? Are your love lives just as lackluster and virginal as usual? Nine, by the way. Luhan and Minseok get sheep.”

“Fuck you,” Luhan raised his middle finger as he went to pick up cards. “Not all of us have swarms of fans clamoring for our attention like you do.”

“Speak for yourself,” Kris snorted.

“Yeah, whatever,” Luhan snorted right back. “A million female fans and not a single hot guy. I’m _so_ jealous.”

Tao’s face crossed Sehun’s mind. “I could hook you up,” he offered jokingly, and Minseok spluttered on his drink while Kris glared.

“What is this,” he drawled. “You hang out with us for what — four months? Five? You think you’re a big shot now or what?”

“Getting laid more than any of you,” Sehun shot back, chugging the rest of his drink while everyone turned to stare at him.

“For real?” Yixing demanded, sitting up off Jongdae a bit. He turned to look at his boyfriend. “I didn’t hear that wrong, right? That wasn’t past tense?”

“No, he’s getting ass,” Jongdae agreed, raising his eyebrows as he moved his game piece and passed the turn to Yixing. “Who? Can I ask?”

“Yeah, I don’t mind anymore.” Sehun still felt kind of bad about that whole incident at the beginning of term. “It’s just Baekhyun, anyway.”

Luhan’s head spun around. “Again?”

“Still?” Kris asked.

“Regularly?” Minseok gasped.

“Ding ding ding!” Sehun pointed at Minseok. “It’s just for fun. But every week.”

“Holy shit,” Jongdae whistled. “Sehun, you’re getting laid even more than _me_.”

Yixing spluttered, leaning his head back and pushing his lips out to demand a kiss.

“I thought you didn’t like Baekhyun?” Luhan turned back to the table, his voice strangely unanimated.

“I was mad at him, but I never disliked him,” Sehun denied. “He’s a lonely guy, you know. He doesn’t have any friends except for Chanyeol.”

“I wonder why,” Kris rolled his eyes. “You don’t make friends by inviting them to bed.”

Jongdae raised his hand and opened his mouth, but Yixing slapped his thigh. Jongdae lowered his hand and had a drink instead.

“That’s why he and Chanyeol are not going out yet, I suppose,” Sehun shrugged.

“Yixing, are you done yet? Is it my turn?” Luhan asked coldly, and Sehun frowned.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine.” Luhan finished his beer and reached for another from the case next to the table, sitting a little way away from Sehun’s arm when he returned to the couch.

“You guys don’t hate Baekhyun just because of me, do you?”

“Eh,” Minseok wiggled his hand. “He was also harassing Yifan a bit, but it’s not really that. It’s more like the kind of person he is. Like we said before, we don’t appreciate people who kiss and tell without consent. You keep that stuff within the group. You don’t take shit public, especially when you’re gay.” He looked Sehun right in the eyes. “People get hurt.”

Sehun leaned back. As much as he felt Baekhyun was just misunderstood due to a severe lack of social skills, he understood what Minseok was saying. He didn’t want anyone else in danger. He pouted and tried to pull Luhan back to his side, but the older boy shrugged him off.

“Stop trying to see my cards,” he protested, leaning forward to look at the board.

“Luhan’s jea~lous,” Jongdae sang under his breath, then hid his face in his beer can. Yixing slapped his thigh again.

“Are you jealous, Luhan?” Sehun leaned forward and grinned at Luhan’s red ears. “You can admit it. I know you want me,” he teased.

Luhan turned to gaze at him steadily, then rolled his eyes and made to place his game token. “Don’t listen to anything Jongdae says. He can’t be trusted.”

“I thought I was the ‘best ever’?” Jongdae raised an eyebrow.

“I changed my mind. You’re the worst. Stop teasing Sehun.”

“Uh, dude, he’s teasing you, not Sehun,” Kris snorted.

“Whatever, I know he loves me,” Jongdae said with relish.

Luhan threw a card face up on the table. “Fuck you all. Give me all of your rocks.”

“Oh, _fuck you_ ,” Minseok groaned, starting to pick cards out of his hand. “I was _just_ about to buy a city.”

“Suck my dick.” Luhan held out his hands to collect everyone’s cards.

“I’ll pass, thanks,” Kris wrinkled his nose.

“Pay up.”

“I don’t have any rocks,” Kris shrugged.

“That’s right, you don’t,” Jongdae laughed.

“Who the shit asked you?”

 

*

 

It was around midnight when Luhan and Sehun wandered to the kitchen to hunt for snacks. Yixing was stuck in solid Mandarin mode, pinning Jongdae to the couch, and Minseok and Kris had whined for so long about being too comfortable to move that Luhan had finally stood up, yelling something about how food should always be more important than laziness, and Sehun had followed him, preferring not to sit alone on the couch when he couldn’t understand a word his friends were saying. He really needed to get on this learning Chinese business. He was having enough trouble comprehending Korean with the amount of alcohol in his system.

He clung to the banister as they descended to the kitchen, trying to feel his way over the carpeted stairs so he didn’t fall. Luhan was laughing at him as he scooted down on his butt, equally unsteady on his feet. They finally made it to the ground floor, clinging to each other to get through to the kitchen.

“Pantry,” Luhan managed to get out, dragging Sehun over to an innocent-looking door close to the fridge.

“Holy, _fuck_ ,” Sehun blanched, as Luhan opened it and revealed a dark abyss of shelves. Luhan flicked a light switch and Sehun stood frozen in awe, mouth falling open.

“You right, dude?”

“You could live in here,” Sehun breathed. “No joke.”

“You’re so fucking cute,” Luhan slurred, ducking to the back and grabbing a few of bags of chips. “Let’s go.”

Sehun pouted. “Kiss me.”

“Excuuuuuse me,” Luhan tried to put his hands on his hips and missed. He stumbled to the side, grabbing a glass jar of cereal to steady himself.

“I haven’t kissed you in weeks,” Sehun whined. “I want to kiss you again.”

“Why are you so touchy when you’re drunk?” Luhan whinged back. He pushed Sehun out of the pantry and closed the door by falling back against it.

“Because you’re so cute.”

“I’m not cute,” Luhan protested, stringing his vowels together. “I’m the manly one.”

“So be a man and kiss me.”

“You’re so horny.”

“I’m not horny.” Sehun shook his head, and it was true. He wasn’t. “I just miss you.”

Luhan was very pink. He dropped the chips on the floor and opened his arms, wedging himself between Sehun and the door, leaning up to kiss him. Sehun buried his fingers in Luhan’s hair, kissing him like he was dying. Luhan’s mouth tasted like beer, but the little noises he let out made it worth it.

Luhan pushed him away, stumbling to let his weight off the door and onto his own feet. And — oh — his face — okay — this was not a cheeky smooch between friends. There was something dark and needy in his eyes as he nudged Sehun back towards the kitchen counter. Sehun staggered back and fell over a bar stool, dropping gracelessly to the floor. Luhan fell to his knees in front of him, pressing his head back against the island and thrusting his tongue into his mouth. Sehun let out a low groan, hands coming up to rest on Luhan’s back. Luhan cupped his jaw. Sehun’s head was spinning — from the fall, from the alcohol, from the lack of oxygen, from all three, he didn’t know. He remembered snapshots of their last kiss, Luhan pressing their bodies close together while Yixing and Jongdae trotted drunkenly out to Jongdae’s room and Kris snored loudly. Sober, he had forgotten most of the incident, but perhaps Luhan’s tongue exploring his mouth was triggering his latent memories. He remembered being unable to stop, addicted to Luhan’s lips.

He was starting to feel in danger of losing himself again. If he didn't stop this soon, they’d be stuck here on the floor for the rest of the night. He carefully sat up, without breaking contact, steadying his hands on Luhan’s waist. Luhan brought his other hand up to Sehun’s cheek, his fingers cool against Sehun’s skin. Sehun gently but firmly grasped Luhan’s wrists, pulling him away.

“The others are waiting for snacks,” he whispered. Luhan’s face fell. Sehun’s drunk brain wasn’t quite sure what to make of that.

“S-sorry,” Luhan mumbled, looking away. “Got. Um. Carried away.”

“I’m so drunk,” Sehun sighed, rolling onto his hands and knees and looking around for the chips. “Sorry. I just wanted to— sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Luhan reached up to the counter top and pulled himself upright. “Me too,” he whispered.

Sehun picked up the chips and looked up at Luhan pathetically. “I can’t get up.”

Luhan held out a hand wordlessly, a slight chuckle escaping his lips. “You big baby.”

“I don’t think I can make it up the stairs.”

“You can. I believe in you.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Luhan wrapped an arm around his waist and helped him out of the kitchen, giggling as they rammed into the doorframe. “Ow.”

They did make it up the stairs, and Sehun held up the chips triumphantly to Minseok and Yixing’s cheers. Minseok leapt to his feet, overwhelming laziness apparently forgotten as he snatched one of the bags and claimed it for his and Kris’ couch. “My heroes,” he hummed, as Kris shuffled right up close to share.

Sehun threw another bag at Jongdae, whose arm whipped up to catch it before it could fall on Yixing’s face, and kept the last one for himself and Luhan as he settled back into the corner of the empty sofa. The leather was cold against his back, and he grimaced as he adjusted his shirt. He tore open the chips as Yixing resumed what appeared to be a monologue, and Jongdae smiled at him fondly, lips pressed against his temple.

Sehun wondered if he could have a relationship like that one day. No jealousy, no complications. Just love and respect and communication. It was obvious they adored each other. Yixing spread his arms wide to emphasize whatever point he was making, and Kris snickered. Sehun was so caught up in envying Jongdae and Yixing’s relationship that he didn’t even notice Luhan was shaking until Minseok frowned. “Luhan, are you okay?”

Luhan was sitting forward with his head in his hands, a tremor running down his whole body. Sehun’s eyes widened and he reached out a tentative hand to lay on his back.

Luhan raised his face to look at Minseok, his hands remaining splayed in front of his chest. He said something in Chinese and Minseok bit his lip. He opened his mouth to say something in response, but ended up just pursing his lips and shaking his head. Luhan continued talking, voice unsteady with distress, tone slowly rising into an angry yell. He slammed his hand on the table, standing up in the same motion. Sehun’s hand fell from his back pathetically and he stared at the older boy in shock, eyes flitting from Luhan’s heaving shoulders to the other guys’ stunned expressions. Luhan grabbed his cigarettes and stormed from the room, kicking the wall on the way out.

“What the fuck?” Sehun squeaked, making to stand, but Minseok quickly pulled free from Kris and waved at him to stay still.

“Sehun, you stay there. I’ll go talk to him,” he stated calmly, touching Sehun’s head lightly as he passed.

Sehun shrank back as he looked around at the others in the strained silence. “What did I do?” he begged in a small voice, wrapping his arms around his body.

“You didn’t do anything, gorgeous,” Jongdae said gently. “It’s not your fault.”

“But…” Sehun pointed helplessly in the direction of the kitchen. “He… he was fine just now!”

The three seniors shared uneasy glances, and even Yixing moved away from Jongdae to sit up and rub his face.

“What… what did he say?” Sehun asked quietly.

Yixing and Kris looked at Jongdae, who grimaced and scratched his head. “Um… well…” he cast desperate looks at his friends, who quickly avoided his eyes and busied themselves with bottle caps and cuticles. Jongdae sighed. “Lately, Luhan’s been a bit… I mean… he… it’s…” he looked around for help again, and Yixing shied further into the opposite side of the couch. Jongdae chewed on his lips for a long few seconds before he finally found his words. “Remember when we met, and he accidentally blurted out something about you, and you got really upset?”

“…Yeah…” Sehun agreed slowly.

“It’s like that. We can’t really tell you. But I’m sure he’ll tell you himself. When he’s ready.” He looked away, fiddling with his sleeve. Yixing rubbed his knee comfortingly.

Yixing murmured something that made Kris sigh. Sehun felt awful. He was one million percent sure this was all his fault, as proven by their reluctance to tell him anything, even when he was sitting _right there_. Jongdae and Kris were arguing in Mandarin. Even if he hadn’t been directly at fault, something he’d done between the kitchen and the top of the stairs had awoken something terrible in Luhan.

Yixing checked his phone and looked up awkwardly. “Minseok wants me on the roof,” he said, suddenly looking very sober. “Um… we might be a while.”

“Okay.” Jongdae kissed his hand and squeezed his fingers. “Catch me up later.”

“Yeah.” Yixing stood up, taking a last sip of his drink before placing the empty can on the table and shuffling out the door. Jongdae moved over to Sehun’s couch and laid a comforting arm around his shoulders.

“It’s really not your fault,” he insisted, pecking him on the head. “Don’t feel bad.”

Sehun accepted the arm, closing his eyes. “I can tell you don’t believe me,” Jongdae whispered. “But I’m serious. Luhan will be fine. I promise.”

Sehun nodded sadly, mostly to appease Jongdae. He didn’t believe it. Not for a second.

“Do you want to sleep?” Jongdae asked. “I’ll get you a blanket. Hold on.”

Kris gazed at him worriedly as Jongdae padded out of the room. “Listen to Jongdae,” he suggested. “I know, it sucks, we can’t tell you. I know it looks like we’re just trying to hide the truth from you. But Luhan would seriously die if we spilled. He’d be so embarrassed.”

“I understand,” Sehun said flatly.

“He’ll tell you eventually.” Kris declared with confidence. “He cares about you a lot.”

Jongdae came back, craning his neck around the quilt billowing in his arms. He dumped it on top of Sehun, rounding the sofa to tuck him in. “Go to sleep,” he advised, patting Sehun’s arm. “We’ll wait up for the others. It’s okay. We’ll have breakfast together tomorrow. Everything will be fine. You’ll see.”

Sehun could feel his anxiety rolling in his stomach, but the alcohol weighed down his eyelids and he felt them slipping shut. “Okay,” he agreed, pulling the quilt up over his chin.

Jongdae pecked his head again. “Goodnight, Sehun.”

 

*

 

 _“Please.” Baekhyun scoffed. “Every time you fuck up, all they do is worry about you. I’m not calling you a bad person, or anything. You’re a regular teenage guy. You act out. You talk without thinking. You do things you wish you hadn’t done. But they_ never _get mad at you. They always see things from your point of view and try to help you. Have you noticed that? No teenager is that empathetic, let alone a whole handful of queer kids who have their own shit to deal with. They_ adore _you.”_

 

*

 

Luhan sniffled as Minseok and Yixing gently pushed him back into the rec room. Jongdae and Kris looked up from where they were softly chatting together.

“Hey,” Jongdae sighed, reaching out an arm. Luhan put one hand into it, rubbing at his eyes with the other. “ _Are you okay?_ ”

Luhan shrugged. “ _I guess._ ”

“ _Come here._ ” Jongdae beckoned, giving Luhan a hug and patting him on the back. “ _You really freaked the shit out of Sehun. He feels terrible_.”

Luhan pulled away and looked over at their youngest friend. “ _Damn_.”

Jongdae tugged on his hand and tapped his lip. Luhan sighed as he reluctantly bent down to kiss him briefly, just a light brush of their lips. Minseok took the free couch, flopping back and bringing up his legs with a groan. Jongdae jerked his head at Sehun. “ _Go sleep with him. It’ll make him feel better to wake up next to you._ ”

Luhan’s mouth opened and closed a couple of times, and he passed a hand over his eyes. He let out a bitter chuckle. “ _You know something’s wrong when even you won’t tease me_.”

“ _You love him_ ,” Jongdae whispered. Yixing slipped onto the couch behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist, closing his eyes and nuzzling into his back. Jongdae weaved their fingers together. “ _Am I in a place to mock that?_ ” he turned his head and softly kissed Yixing’s cheek. “ _Shall we go to bed?_ ”

Yixing nodded sleepily, and Jongdae squeezed his hand. He pointed at Luhan. “ _You, stop being such a pussy_. _He’d say yes if you asked him, you know._ ”

“ _After the contest_ ,” Luhan relented, gazing at Sehun’s lips, parted in sleep. “ _I swear. I’ll do it._ ”

“ _Sure, I’ll believe that when I see it._ ” Jongdae stood up, pulling Yixing with him. “ _Goodnight, Luhan. Night Yifan._ ”

Kris grunted, stretching out into the space they’d just vacated. “Night.”

Luhan padded over to Sehun. He carefully pulled up the edge of the blanket, trying to slip in without—

Sehun’s eyes opened and his mouth snapped closed with a snort. Luhan froze.

Sehun blinked once, then brought a hand up to touch Luhan’s face. Luhan’s eyes fluttered shut, feeling the tension in his spine melt away. His heart hurt.

“Luhan,” Sehun whispered. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Luhan opened his eyes and smiled weakly, clambering onto the sofa and pressing his forehead to Sehun’s. “I’m sorry. Go back to sleep.”

Sehun rubbed their noses together, then tilted his chin up to kiss him. Luhan allowed himself to allow it. Sehun’s hand was still on his face. Maybe this would be like the last time. Maybe Sehun wouldn’t remember a thing in the morning.

“I’m sorry,” Sehun whispered. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“No, no, you didn’t,” Luhan protested. He wrapped his arms around Sehun’s head. “It’s okay. Please sleep.”

He could feel Sehun continue to kiss his neck before he drifted off once again.

He wondered if Sehun could feel his heart pounding.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry for sebaek


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Man,” Baekhyun moaned after math, slumping onto Sehun’s back as they walked out of the classroom. “That quiz sucked.”_
> 
> _Sehun agreed, but frowned nonetheless. “I thought you were really good at math?”_
> 
> _“Yeah,” Baekhyun admitted. “I’m pretty sure I aced it. I just thought I’d be more relatable this way.”_   
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realised I'm gonna be out all day tomorrow so u get a chapter early lmao  
> Rating for chapter: G

 

 

 

“Alright,” Chanyeol announced, approaching where Sehun was sitting in the quad with Tao and Kyungsoo, holding a small notebook and pen, Baekhyun in tow. “Time to organize my summer vacation!”

“You organize?” Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow.

Chanyeol shrugged. “Baekhyun’s making me plan things out so I don’t miss anything,” he admitted, pointing to a page in his notebook. “Here, Friday the 16th, Baekhyun’s singing thing. Sehun, when’s your dance contest?”

“Are you coming to watch?” Sehun asked in surprise.

“Of course!” Chanyeol grinned. “We go to all of Tao’s things, why are you surprised?”

Sehun shrugged. “Just wasn’t sure you’d be interested.”

Tao rolled his eyes. “As if we wouldn’t go to cheer you on,” he scoffed. “You just try to keep us out.”

“When is it?” Chanyeol banged his pen against the page.

“The Saturday, the 17th,” Sehun replied, peering at the notebook.

Chanyeol scribbled it down dutifully. “And your track meet?”

“The week after, the 24th to 25th.”

Chanyeol pointed his pen at Tao. “Your wushu showcase?”

“The 23rd.”

“No one has birthdays in July, right?”

“Nope.”

“This is fun,” Chanyeol pushed his glasses up his nose. “Who would’ve thought it would feel good to know what you’re doing?”

“Me,” Kyungsoo deadpanned. “Like I tell you every. Single. Semester.”

Chanyeol waved a hand dismissively. “Do you have anything on in the holidays?” he asked in lieu of replying.

“No,” Kyungsoo shoved food into his mouth. “You know I’m really boring with extracurriculars.”

“What’s your singing thing?” Sehun asked Baekhyun.

“Oh, that…” Baekhyun scratched the back of his head. “Nothing really… My brother and his fiancé are doing some charity event and they asked me and a girl from my old school to sing.”

“That’s so cool,” Sehun said. “Are you good at singing?”

“He’s _so_ good,” Chanyeol answered for him, tucking his notebook back into his bag and pulling out his sandwich. “And he gets to take one friend, so of course it’s me.”

“Naturally.” Sehun wiggled his eyebrows. Chanyeol blushed.

“Anyway, we’re going to eat in the gym,” Chanyeol announced. “It’s too hot out here.”

“Okay, see you,” Sehun waved. “Have fun.”

Chanyeol stuck out his tongue as the two of them wandered off.

It was not lost on him that Tao and Kyungsoo had not said a single word to Baekhyun.

 

*

 

“Hey, Sehun,” Jongin waved Sehun over to where he was sitting on the floor with Luhan and Yixing. “Get over here.”

“What’s going on?” Sehun dropped his bag at the door of the studio and sat down with them.

“The contest is just over a month away,” Jongin said, fiddling with something on his laptop, “And tickets are going on sale tomorrow. We each need to sell at least two tickets to qualify. How many should I put you down for?”

Sehun hummed. He figured he should invite Baekhyun. Chanyeol would want to go with him. And Krystal. “Five, I guess.”

“Awesome,” Jongin looked up. “Luhan’s only got two, since this guy and his boy are not going to be around,” he elbowed Yixing, “And I only want to invite one of my sisters. Can I borrow one of your friends?”

“Sure.” Sehun chewed on his lip. Right. Family. He wondered if he should invite his parents, but they probably wouldn’t be interested. They were going to his track meet the following week, anyway. They never had thought much of his dancing.

“You good?” Jongin’s fingers paused on the keyboard. “No one else you want to bring? Tickets to this sell out really fast, actually, since a lot of entertainment companies send scouts.”

“Say what now?”

Jongin waved a hand. “Don't stress it. It’s just like any other contest.”

Sehun felt his stomach tighten with nervousness. This was actually a big deal. “No, just the five for me,” he sighed, watching as Jongin finished filling out the webform and sent it.

“Cool, so that’s done,” Jongin closed his computer and went to put it in his bag.

“We also need to go shopping this week for our outfits,” Luhan told Sehun. “We need to send in group photos for the program by Sunday.”

Sehun swallowed. “Okay.”

Everything suddenly seemed to be happening very fast.

 

*

 

The three of them said goodbye to Yixing and wandered down to the CBD after practice, piling into the back seat of the bus together. Jongin slung his legs up over half of the bench, leaning back on his backpack. “So, what’s our concept going to be?” he asked. “I’m feeling bare chests, leather jackets and loose pants.”

“I’m with you on the leather jackets,” Luhan nodded, “But loose pants are a no way. I’m not getting hit in the face with your balls right at the beginning of the dance.”

“Not in public, anyway,” Jongin grinned, and Luhan hit him with his blazer.

“Whatever it is, it can’t be too expensive,” Sehun pointed out hesitantly, “I don’t have that much money.”

“Psh, don’t worry about that.” Luhan folded his blazer back into his lap. “We’re being subsidized by Jongdae as a favour to Yixing. You’ll have to shell out to front the tickets before your friends pay you back, but clothes are entirely free.”

“There is a budget, though, right?” Jongin confirmed.

“Yeah, $3,000 for all of us.”

“ _What_ ,” Sehun yelped, sitting up straight in the seat. “ _Three thousand_?”

“Yeah, that gives us a thousand each, so a good $200 for shoes, jackets, shirts, pants, and accessories,” Luhan counted off on his fingers. “That seems reasonable to me.”

“Are you out of your mind?” Sehun gaped. “How the hell are we going to spend two hundred on shirts?”

“Haven’t you ever had to get something you really want and you find the _perfect_ one but it’s like $150?” Jongin asked.

“No,” Sehun retorted, “The most expensive thing I own is my track shoes and they were like sixty bucks.”

“I’m not saying I _bought_ the $150 thing,” Jongin countered. “Just that I _wanted_ it. Because it was awesome. And Jongdae — well, Yixing — wants us to look awesome.”

“That’s crazy though. That’s too much money.”

“Not for him. Relax.” Luhan patted his arm. “It’s a gift. You wouldn’t decline a gift, right?”

“I would if it cost that much,” Sehun muttered, but settled back into his seat again.

“Well, you can pay him back by looking hot as fuck when we win,” Jongin announced. “Presentation is part of what we’re being judged on, after all.”

“For real?” Sehun groaned. “What kind of contest have you gotten me into, Jongin?”

“Come on, Sehun, this is really important to me,” Jongin begged. “Heaps of contestants get their parents to sponsor them for this. It just so happens that the richest person we know is not, in fact, someone’s dad, just someone’s boyfriend. It’s basically the same thing.”

“It is so _not_ the same thing,” Sehun rolled his eyes. “And I’m not like that, anyway. I don’t like taking handouts from people I could never in a million years pay back.”

“You don’t say things like that when you’re drinking all his cider,” Luhan pointed out.

Sehun opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. “Huh,” he admitted thoughtfully, chewing on his thumbnail. Come to think of it, he _had_ gotten awfully comfortable with helping himself to anything from Jongdae’s kitchen.

“Anyway, you’ll feel completely fine with spending as much as you want when you see me in those clothes,” Jongin teased with an undertone of truth, running his hand through his hair and leaning on the back of the seat in front.

Sehun snorted. “You’re gross. I’m over you.”

“Sure you are,” Jongin blew him a kiss. “I’ll remind you you said that when you’re cleaning your drool off the shop floor.”

“As if.”

 

*

 

But Jongin looked _damn good_ as he came out of the change room, and Sehun’s mouth fell open. “What did I tell you?” Jongin teased, snapping the collar of the jacket and rolling his shoulders back.

“Fuck,” Sehun laughed, shaking his head. “You got me.”

Luhan hummed disapprovingly at the skinny pleather pants. “Aren’t they too tight, though? Can you spread your legs in those?”

Jongin just looked at him, his head falling over his shoulder. Luhan cackled as he realized what he’d just said. “Whoops. I’m serious but.”

Jongin did a couple of experimental squats and stretches. “Yeah, they might be a bit tight,” he admitted. “What do you think of the look, though? Should we go for something like this?”

“Yeah, it looks good.” Luhan nodded. “Sehun, you’ve got skinny legs. Maybe you can wear those pants and we’ll go for jeans.”

“Yeah, give them a go,” Jongin agreed. “Hold on, you can try these ones. One second.” He ducked back behind the curtain.

Luhan snickered at Sehun’s expression. “Have you come around yet? It’s worth the price, right?”

“I still think we could get knockoffs cheaper,” Sehun disagreed.

“But that _takes_ so much longer,” Luhan protested. “You have to sift through racks and racks of crap to get to something that looks like this. Shops like this one only have like one or two collections in at a time. You can just see immediately if they have what we want or not.”

“That’s true,” Sehun admitted. “Well, I guess as long as we stay under budget…”

“That’s the spirit,” Jongin grinned, coming back out in his school pants. He threw the store’s pair at Sehun. “Try these on, quick, I want to see them on you.”

Sehun sighed as he obeyed, quickly changing into the pants and looking at himself in the mirror.

Wow. He did look good. The pants had stitches embroidered across the knees, and studded details along the fake pockets and side seams. He turned around and twisted to see his butt — yes. He approved. The fabric felt like it was going to get real sweaty real fast, but he could more or less move just fine. He pushed back the curtain and Luhan whistled, placing a hand over his heart.

“Damn,” he breathed, and Jongin folded his arms, nodding in approval.

“Can you move?”

“Yeah,” Sehun kicked experimentally. “I reckon I can dance in these. Hang on.” He dropped forward in a lunge, then lowered himself to the floor in a full front split.

Luhan choked.

“Done and done,” Jongin decreed. He held out his arm for Sehun to pull himself up on. “Shall we move on?”

“Are you getting that jacket?” Sehun nodded at the piece Jongin was still wearing.

“Hell yeah,” Jongin ran his hands down his chest. “Don’t you think it suits me?”

“Turn around?”

Jongin held out his arms and spun on one foot, then jumped with his legs out and posed. Sehun snorted. “You’re a doofus, but yeah, it looks good. I’m gonna try to get out of these.”

 

*

 

“Alright,” Jongin announced as they left the shop. “Shirts next? What are we thinking? I had in mind like a mesh top or something.”

“A bit cocky, are we?” Luhan raised an eyebrow. Jongin wordlessly lifted his shirt, and Luhan did a double take, placing a hand self-consciously over his own stomach. “Okay, you can wear a mesh top.”

“Holy shit,” Sehun agreed while Jongin laughed, sadly glancing down at his belly. It was perfectly flat, but there was no visible muscle.

“Hey, Luhan, show us your arms?” Jongin flapped a hand, and Luhan frowned, but shrugged off his blazer, pushed up his sleeve and flexed. Jongin nodded. “You should wear something sleeveless. Like no jacket, or a vest, or something. We should all wear something to show off our best feature.”

“Like my jaw?” Sehun said cheekily, tipping his head to the side and running a hand over his throat from his ear to his chin.

“I meant your legs, but actually…” Jongin stared at him for a moment. “You’re right, that decides it. Sehun’s going low-cut.”

“Am I a doll?” Sehun snorted. “Do I get any say in what I’m going to wear at all?”

“Nope.”

“At this point, I’m feeling we should trust Jongin’s fashion sense,” Luhan admitted. “He seems to know what he’s doing.”

“Fair enough,” Sehun relented. “Well then, Jongin, I’ll place my image in your capable hands.”

“That’s the spirit,” Jongin grinned, pulling them into the Calvin Klein outlet.

 

*

 

“How much did we spend?” Sehun asked as they finally walked to the train station, laden with bags.

Luhan leafed through their collection of receipts, lips moving as he quickly calculated. “One thousand, five hundred and ninety… twenty…. no, six hundred and eighteen,” he announced. “There you go, Sehun. Under budget. About half of the budget. You happy?”

Sehun grimaced. It was still a _lot_ of money. But they had stuck to designer brands, so he supposed that was, for what it was, pretty decent.

“It’s okay,” Jongin soothed him, clearly riding the high of using someone else’s wallet. “You can keep them after, and then you’ll have a bomb-ass clubbing outfit ready to go when you start university.”

“I guess you’re right.” Sehun had to admit it felt kind of good to own such nice clothes.

“We are gonna look so goooood,” Luhan sang, texting photos to Yixing. That was an idea. Sehun pulled out his phone as well, sending a couple of selfies he’d taken in the change rooms to Tao. Tao always managed to look stunning in knockoff brands, but he was going to be _so_ jealous. Luhan stopped short at the entrance to the station, reading off his phone. “Yixing wants to come eat with us, you guys want to head to Yongsan-gu and meet up for dinner?”

“Sure,” Sehun agreed happily, starting to condense his shopping into just two bags and folding the others, pushing them into the bin. “Sounds good.”

“Jongin?”

“Yeah, I’m down,” Jongin nodded, adjusting his backpack. “I can’t drink too much, though. I have a math quiz in the morning.”

“Oh, fuck.” Sehun groaned. “I forgot about that.”

“You know you can have a meal without alcohol, right?” Luhan checked. “Just saying.”

“We’re also underage,” Sehun pointed out. Tao replied to his message with a string of exclamation marks and a couple of heart eyes emoji.

“Restaurants never check,” Jongin said breezily.

“It doesn’t matter!” Luhan hit Jongin on the arm. “You’re not drinking! I am the responsible adult here!”

“Sure, sure,” Jongin grabbed Luhan by the head and noogied him until he dropped his bags and screeched, clawing ferociously at Jongin’s arms. “Shall we go?” he said innocently, letting go and marching down the stairs to the station.

 

*

 

“Man,” Baekhyun moaned after math, slumping onto Sehun’s back as they walked out of the classroom. “That quiz sucked.”

Sehun agreed, but frowned nonetheless. “I thought you were really good at math?”

“Yeah,” Baekhyun admitted. “I’m pretty sure I aced it. I just thought I’d be more relatable this way.”

“ _Man_ ,” Jongin groaned, much more convincingly than Baekhyun as he caught up. “That quiz _sucked_.”

Baekhyun pointed at him. “See?”

Sehun patted Jongin’s back. “I’m sure you did fine.”

“I drew a dog as one of my answers.”

“…Oh.” Sehun pressed his lips together. “Yeah, then you’re probably screwed.”

“And I have an essay due this afternoon,” Jongin sighed. “I’m going to the library. Pray for me.”

“You can do it!” Baekhyun cheered. “Good luck!”

Jongin mimed shooting himself in the head.

“We’ll walk you,” Sehun offered. “We’re heading that way anyway.”

Baekhyun hooked his arm into Sehun’s, smiling cheekily and leaning up to whisper in his ear as they started walking. “Down for a quickie?”

“No,” Sehun pushed his head. “We agreed. Not at school.”

“Damn,” Baekhyun pouted. “I guess we are actually going to class, then.”

“Did I miss something?” Jongin interjected.

“Nope,” his friends chorused.

“Sehun.”

Baekhyun screamed as Kyungsoo appeared out of nowhere, clinging tighter to Sehun’s arm. “Don’t _do_ that!” he gasped, clasping at his heart.

Kyungsoo just glared at him, turning his attention to Sehun. “You didn’t reply my messages.”

“I had a test,” Sehun explained. “Sorry, what’s up?”

“Hi, Kyungsoo,” Jongin waved, sticking his head around Sehun to see Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo glared at him too.

“Come sit with us at recess, okay?” he turned to Sehun. “Tao’s in crisis and we need your help.”

“Is he okay?” Sehun asked with concern as Jongin pouted and withdrew.

“Someone filled his locker with fake cockroaches and he’s having a panic attack,” Kyungsoo elaborated. “We’ve got him for this period, but I need you to help Chanyeol look after him while I clean the locker out.”

“Sure thing,” Sehun agreed. “Do you know who did it?”

Kyungsoo scrunched his face. “No idea. Something childish and stupid like this, could be anyone. I have to go. I don’t want to leave him alone with Chanyeol too long. You know how he can’t deal with Tao crying very well. You’re the best at that.”

“Should I come now?”

Kyungsoo hesitated, the _yes_ written all over his face, but his disdain of skipping class holding him back.

“I’ll come now,” Sehun sighed, freeing himself from Baekhyun’s continued death grip. “Baek, can I have your notes later?”

“Aw, that means I can’t sleep,” Baekhyun whined. “But yeah, fine.”

“Okay, see you later,” Sehun waved at Baekhyun and Jongin, following Kyungsoo.

“Bye, Sehun,” Jongin said dejectedly.

Sehun checked his phone as Kyungsoo led him to the art block. There were a number of messages from Kyungsoo, outlining the general situation, then one from Jongin, 20 seconds ago.

_y does he hate me??? :’( :’( :’(_

Sehun put his phone back in his pocket.

He would deal with that later.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Xing got himself a sugar daddy at 19 like damn boy tell us ur secret


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Sehun swallowed. “Can I ask you something?”_
> 
> _“Sure you can.” Baekhyun propped himself up on his elbows. “What’s on your mind?”_
> 
> _“It’s more like a favour.”_
> 
> _“Ooh.” Baekhyun smirked. “I’m listening.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: R. R as fuck

 

 

 

Sehun called Baekhyun from outside his door as usual, feeling incredibly nervous. He had wanted to ask this question for a couple of weeks now, but hadn’t managed to pluck up the courage. He was definitely going to ask today. “I’m here,” he said into the phone when Baekhyun picked up. “Come let me in.”

“Coming,” Baekhyun acknowledged, hanging up and appearing at the door a few second later. “Hey there.”

“Hey,” Sehun returned.

Baekhyun put a finger to his lips. “My parents are home today,” he whispered. “So we gotta be quiet.”

“Isn’t that a little risky?” Sehun asked cautiously.

“Not really.” Baekhyun beckoned Sehun up the hall and ushered him quickly into his room. “They don’t really care about me, and they’re on the other side of the house, so we won’t disturb them. But if they come down the corridor for any reason, we gotta shut up pronto.”

“Okay,” Sehun agreed, his heart pounding. Today was going to be a turning point in his life. “Your hair looks nice today.”

“Thanks!” Baekhyun ran a hand through it, fluffing it up. “I curled it myself this morning. Almost burned myself a few times, but I made it!”

Sehun reached out to touch it. It was so soft. “You’re so cute.”

“Hell yeah, I am,” Baekhyun nuzzled into Sehun’s palm for a second then flopped down on his bed with a sigh. “Such a waste. I’m a real catch, to be honest. But nobody wants me.”

“Well you’ve got me,” Sehun pointed out, sitting on the edge of the bed and walking his fingers up Baekhyun’s chest.

“Yeah, I guess I do,” Baekhyun smiled lazily up at him.

Sehun swallowed. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure you can.” Baekhyun propped himself up on his elbows. “What’s on your mind?”

“It’s more like a favour.”

“Ooh.” Baekhyun smirked. “I’m listening.”

“Can we swap today?” Sehun blurted out.

“Huh?”

“You know,” Sehun cleared his throat awkwardly. “Can we. Swap. What we usually do. And I’ll do what you usually do.”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened. “Seriously?” he breathed.

Sehun hid his face in his hands. He could feel himself going red. He nodded.

Baekhyun sat up, shifting closer and pulling one of Sehun’s hands away. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Sehun nodded again. “I really… I want to… I’ve been… I wanna know…”

Baekhyun kissed him on the cheek. “I’m honoured,” he stated, beaming at Sehun’s one eye. “Don’t be embarrassed.” He pulled the other hand away and leaned in for a kiss. He let go of Sehun’s wrists when their lips met, pushing Sehun’s shirt up and running his hands over his body. He gently pushed Sehun back and the younger boy shifted to swing his legs up onto the mattress.

Baekhyun pulled Sehun’s shirt over his head, breaking the kiss for a moment, dropping it to the floor, running his hands over Sehun’s stomach, waist, chest, shoulders. Sehun moaned, feeling arousal run through his whole body. He reached down to Baekhyun’s jeans and unbuttoned them, whimpering as Baekhyun flicked his nipples. Baekhyun’s snickers dissolved into a moan with Sehun’s hand creeping into his underwear and wrapping around his cock. Sehun rolled them over, leaning on his left arm as he brought his right hand up to Baekhyun’s mouth and pushed his thumb between his lips. Baekhyun’s eyes fluttered shut as he sucked on it, hand running up and down Sehun’s waist. Sehun brought his arm back down, stroking Baekhyun’s length, running his damp thumb over the head. Baekhyun gasped and mewled, pulling Sehun back down by his hair into a kiss.

Sehun enjoyed himself for a while, switching his focus between the cool air on his skin, Baekhyun’s cock in his hand, Baekhyun’s lips against his own. He pulled away eventually, with one last peck, before he grinned cheekily and crawled down to crouch over Baekhyun’s crotch. He slid his hands under Baekhyun’s waistband and pulled his pants down, turning the jeans inside-out as he hauled them off his ankles.

“ _Oh_ ,” Baekhyun breathed, then cried out and desperately grabbed the pillows as Sehun took him into his mouth. “Oh… you haven’t done this for me before, Sehunnie,” he gasped, voice trembling, toes curling.

Sehun pulled away for a moment, pressing a kiss to the inside of Baekhyun’s thigh. “I didn’t think you’d want me to after having my tongue in your ass,” he pointed out, “But I’m really enjoying those noises you’re making.” Baekhyun pouted, trying to keep quiet and failing miserably when Sehun flicked the underside of the head with his tongue. One hand flew from the pillow and grabbed Sehun’s hair instead, and Sehun let out a small noise of pain, but didn’t stop, taking a deep breath and sinking right to the base of Baekhyun’s dick.

Baekhyun cried out, jerking involuntarily and making Sehun choke. “Sorry,” he apologized quickly, patting Sehun’s cheek. “You okay?”

Sehun nodded, straightening up to cough and wipe his eyes. “This is fun,” he smiled. “You should have asked me to do this before.”

“I have to agree with you there,” Baekhyun laughed shakily. “Fuck, it’s been a while.”

Sehun crawled back up the length of his body, nipping at the soft skin on his throat. “Do me,” he pleaded, tugging at Baekhyun’s shirt.

“Yes, hell yes,” Baekhyun agreed quickly, sitting up and pulling his own shirt off and quickly undoing Sehun’s pants. “I’m so excited. You have no idea.”

“Been a while?” Sehun teased.

“Ages,” Baekhyun whined, shoving his pants down his legs. “No one’s let me top them for _so_ long.”

“I’m not letting you,” Sehun pointed out, rolling onto his back and kicking his jeans to the floor. “I’m asking you.”

“God, you’re so hot,” Baekhyun sighed appreciatively, reaching for his sex stash under the bed. He rummaged for a while, finally dumping a handful of items on the bed.

“What are those?”

“Trainer plugs.” Baekhyun held them up for Sehun to see and shook them. “We got one small floppy one, one medium stiff one, and one large hard one. They’re to help you get used to having something in your butt.”

“Okay,” Sehun nodded. It seemed like a good idea.

“I know what I’m doing,” Baekhyun assured him. “I’ve had one very bad first experience and one very, _very_ good second experience. I’m gonna take good care of you.”

“I trust you,” Sehun said simply, ignoring his nervously-churning stomach.

“You should lie on your front,” Baekhyun suggested. “It hurts if you’re on your back.”

“Really?” Sehun frowned, moving onto his hands and knees.

“Lie down,” Baekhyun repeated, rubbing his back. “Relax.”

“Okay,” Sehun did as he said, settling into the mattress and pillowing his head on his arms.

“Want me to eat you out?”

“Um…” Sehun hesitated.

Baekhyun retracted immediately, pecking the small of Sehun’s back with a small laugh. “Maybe another time.”

Sehun let out a breath, letting himself relax a little further. He heard Baekhyun snap open the cap of the lube, a sound now familiar. He shivered as Baekhyun ran a slippery finger between his cheeks, gently massaging his entrance.

“Relax,” Baekhyun said once again, nudging Sehun’s legs further apart and settling cross-legged between them. “It takes more effort than you’d think to just stay chill. You focus on that, and leave the rest to me, okay? I really want this to be good for you.”

Sehun felt a weird twinge in his heart at the words. He felt incredibly lucky to be doing this with someone, not someone who necessarily loved him, but at least cared about him, who wanted him to be happy and comfortable and safe. He hummed in acknowledgement, counting four seconds for each breath in and out.

Baekhyun slowly, carefully, pushed the tip of one finger inside. Sehun gasped, then laughed embarrassedly. He was right — it was hard to stay relaxed. He wiggled his shoulders a little, easing the sudden tension. Baekhyun pumped a couple of times, pushing the finger a tiny bit further in each time.

“What finger is that?” Sehun asked, craning his neck over his shoulder.

“Pointer,” Baekhyun replied, keeping his eyes on Sehun’s ass in concentration. He rubbed his butt comfortingly with his dry hand. “You’re doing so good. Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

“I’m going to go in a bit further.”

“Okay.”

Sehun gritted his teeth as Baekhyun pushed in deeper. “Can you… put a bit more lube? Like… just… on your knuckle…”

“Of course,” Baekhyun said softly, and Sehun felt the cold drip as Baekhyun did as he asked. “You can push a bit, to let me in.”

“Alright,” Sehun agreed, doing so, and Baekhyun slipped in even further. Sehun gasped.

Baekhyun paused. “Still okay?”

“Still okay.” Sehun closed his eyes. He was soft again, he noticed, which was a little disappointing, if he was honest. But it felt kind of nice. Baekhyun gently thrust his finger in and out until Sehun relaxed again, lightly squeezing his thigh.

“Do you want to try another finger?” Baekhyun murmured softly.

“Sure,” Sehun agreed. Baekhyun lubed up again, teasing at Sehun’s hole with his middle finger. Sehun licked his lips, struggling to melt into the pillows. He whimpered as the second finger poked past his rim and Baekhyun stopped still again. “I’m fine,” he said quickly. “That was a good sound. It’s good. Keep going.”

“Alright.” Baekhyun kept going slow, so slow, eventually managing to fit two of his fingers inside. Sehun felt him gently curve his knuckles, pressing against his walls. He moaned softly. Baekhyun wiggled his fingers, twisted carefully, rubbed over _holy shit_.

Sehun cried out, body jerking, hips snapping backwards, suddenly hard again. “Oh, god, oh my god,” he gasped, hands shaking.

“Feel good?” Baekhyun checked cheekily, tilting his head to the side to peer at Sehun’s face.

“ _Yes_ ,” Sehun moaned. “Do that agai—”

“Shh!” Baekhyun suddenly hissed urgently, and Sehun froze. He could hear footsteps outside the door. His ears strained to hear where they were going. The two boys stayed perfectly still, listening to the shuffling sounds in the hall, until after what felt like an eternity, the door swung open, slammed shut, and Baekhyun shoved his fingers down _hard_ into Sehun’s sweet spot again.

Sehun wailed, quickly shoving his face into the pillow. Baekhyun laughed. “Oh, you sound so fucking good,” he sighed happily. “You like that, don’t you…”

Sehun just nodded helplessly, whimpering softly into the pillow.

“I’m going to try the plugs,” Baekhyun announced. Sehun hummed in acceptance, letting out a quiet noise as Baekhyun carefully pulled his fingers out. He felt cold and empty without him there, groaning when he felt the blunt tip of the toy slip into his ass. Baekhyun pushed it in, slowly but steadily. Sehun’s mouth gaped wide against the pillowcase as the wide part of the plug stretched his rim, his back arching. Baekhyun kept going until the base was flush against his skin, humming happily as he held it in place with a careful finger. “How’s that, Sehunnie?”

“Good,” Sehun moaned, legs trembling.

“Which size do you think this is?” Baekhyun smirked.

“The… small one…?” Sehun suggested uncertainly, stress lacing his voice.

“Medium,” Baekhyun corrected, trying not to laugh. “You’re doing so, so well,” he praised him, “Are you having fun?”

“Mmhmm,” Sehun confirmed.

“Keep that in there,” Baekhyun ordered, removing his finger. He lightly pulled on Sehun’s waist, rolling him onto his side, and lay down next to him to smile in his face. “Kiss me?”

Sehun obliged, wrapping his arms around Baekhyun and feeling the plug shift inside him as he hooked one leg over his hip. Baekhyun reached between their bodies and wrapped a sticky hand around both of their cocks, stroking slowly. Sehun moaned loudly, thrusting up into his hand.

“I can’t wait to fuck you,” Baekhyun breathed. “I want to be in you so bad.”

“Do it, then,” Sehun urged, kissing him heatedly.

“Not yet,” Baekhyun refused. “I want to get you on the big plug first. Don’t want to hurt you.”

Sehun let out a disappointed noise. “You can do whatever you want to me,” he promised; the feeling of fullness, the stimulation to his dick, the smell of Baekhyun on the sheets making him crave more.

Baekhyun let out a low growl. “Don’t tempt me,” he warned softly, nipping at Sehun’s lip. Sehun felt the plug shift and he reached behind himself to push it back into place. “Good boy,” Baekhyun teased, and Sehun throbbed in his hand.

Baekhyun stiffened, then pulled back and stared at him in surprise. “Do you like me speaking to you like that?” he asked, examining his face.

Sehun bit his lip, nodding shyly.

“Well, this is interesting.” Baekhyun smirked. “I wouldn’t have pegged you as the type. But I guess you like someone to take care of you? Have fun with you?” Baekhyun slid his hands up Sehun’s arms, pinning his wrists to the bed. “How far should I go?” he leant in to whisper into Sehun’s ear. “Do I own you?”

 _Yes, oh god yes._ Sehun keened softly, nodding again.

“Hmm,” Baekhyun hummed sultrily, then grabbed Sehun’s chin and jerked it up to kiss him roughly. Sehun whined, then moaned, then gasped as Baekhyun pulled away just as quickly. Baekhyun ran a thumb over his lower lip and Sehun pushed his lips forward to kiss it.

“Shall we get you ready for me?” Baekhyun asked, grabbing the big plug and holding it up for Sehun to see.

“Yeah,” Sehun propped himself up on his elbows and spread his legs. “Whatever you want. _Anything_ you want.”

“Touch it,” Baekhyun ordered, proffering the toy. Sehun obeyed, reaching out to gauge its size and shape. “Are you going to be good? Are you going to take it all in for me?”

“Yes,” Sehun breathed, averting his eyes.

Baekhyun grabbed his chin again. “Look at me when I ask you a question,” he commanded, and Sehun blushed, adjusting the plug inside him again. He’d never seen Baekhyun like this but it was beyond a doubt the hottest thing he’d ever experienced. He felt himself settling into the role of Baekhyun’s sex toy like he belonged there.

“I’ll be good,” he promised.

Baekhyun let go of his face wordlessly, very pink. He took back the large toy, and Sehun watched him coat it generously with the lube.

“Are you okay like this? Or do you want to turn around again?”

Sehun took a breath. “I want to see you do it,” he admitted softly, parting his legs. “Please.”

“Such good manners,” Baekhyun praised, smiling as he hooked his fingers under the base of the medium plug and carefully eased it out of Sehun’s hole. Sehun gasped sharply, his erection blocking his line of sight. Baekhyun tossed it to the side, placing a hand on his thigh to hold him steady while he started to insert the last toy.

Sehun whimpered as it started to stretch, and it was not a good whimper this time. “No, no, no,” he stammered, and Baekhyun stopped immediately. “You’re right, you’re right. Let me turn around.”

Baekhyun chuckled. “Okay.”

Sehun moved back to be on all fours, pushing his ass up to Baekhyun’s hands. Baekhyun tried inserting the toy again, and this time Sehun relaxed, pushing his face down into the pillows and sighing. He pushed like Baekhyun had told him to, took care of his breathing, let Baekhyun take care of the play. He couldn’t contain his noises as the thick part, this time a good inch and a half diameter, nudged at his entrance.

He waved a hand behind him to get Baekhyun’s attention. “Lube,” he whispered. “Please.”

Baekhyun kissed his butt, saying nothing, but Sehun felt the cold splat of the lube on his ass as Baekhyun did as he asked. He relaxed into the bed again, pushing his hips back to a better angle. Baekhyun continued to slide the toy in, whispering quiet nonsense to soothe him. Sehun let out a small sob when the final inch went in, his breathing slightly shaky.

“Does it hurt?”

Sehun shook his head. “Uncomfortable. But doesn’t hurt.”

“You did so well, baby,” Baekhyun cooed. He reached between his legs to stroke his cock and Sehun gasped. “Oh, look at you. So good. So good for me.”

He started to carefully pull the plug out, then pushed it back in again, teasing Sehun’s rim with the bulbous part of the toy. Sehun moaned loudly, clawing at the sheets.

“Shh, shh, shh,” Baekhyun whispered, continuing to tease him. “You don’t want anyone to hear, do you?” He leaned forward. “If you get me in trouble, I’ll have to punish you,” he promised lowly, and Sehun throbbed, moaning again. Baekhyun snickered. “You like that thought, don’t you?”

Sehun nodded pathetically, biting the pillow to stifle his noises.

“You don’t even know how much I want you,” Baekhyun breathed, hand tightening around Sehun’s erection. “Seeing you like this…”

Sehun spat out the pillow. “Fuck me,” he begged, “Please, I can take it, I want to take it, I want you, please…”

Baekhyun pushed the plug in a final time and roughly flipped Sehun onto his back again, sitting on his stomach and hauling his shoulders up to shove his tongue in his mouth. Sehun could feel his erection resting against Baekhyun’s back, and as much as he really wanted to try bottoming, he was tempted to just flip Baekhyun the fuck over and hammer his brains out. He just wanted, so badly, to come.

“You want me to fuck you, Sehunnie?” Baekhyun asked quietly, holding him by the hair and interrupting his small fantasy.

“Yes,” Sehun replied obediently, snapping back to the present.

“You’re gonna be good for me and take my cock?”

“Yes.”

Baekhyun grinned, thoroughly enjoying the role play. He pulled Sehun’s head back further, leaving him gasping. “You’re gonna scream my name while I claim you as mine?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Sehun sobbed softly, imagining what Baekhyun’s length would feel like thrusting into him. “Yes, please yes, I belong to you, please take me, please…”

“You sound so good when you beg,” Baekhyun sighed, kissing him one last time and clambering off to grab a condom. He put it on one handed, using the other to slowly twist the toy inside Sehun’s ass. Sehun’s leg jerked involuntarily as he whimpered, reaching down to touch himself.

“Hey,” Baekhyun interjected, “What do you think you’re doing, doing that without my permission?”

Sehun whined, staring at him desperately, but slowly withdrew his hand.

“That’s better,” Baekhyun hummed happily, “You’re not allowed to touch yourself anymore. Only I can. Why?”

“Because I belong to you,” Sehun answered softly, grabbing the sheets again to distract his hands and trying to ignore his own desperation.

“That’s right,” Baekhyun nodded, sitting up against the headboard. He reached out and Sehun crawled to his side, letting Baekhyun position him seated on the bed facing him, legs bent. “Pull it out yourself,” Baekhyun ordered, “So I can see.”

Sehun bit his lip, curling trembling fingers around the base of the plug and carefully removing it. His brow furrowed at the stretch, and he glanced at Baekhyun, who was staring, transfixed at the motion while he blindly smeared lube over his sheathed dick. Sehun hadn’t even known himself, prior to this, that he would enjoy being treated like an object. But he _loved_ it. He loved being told what to do. He loved being provocative. He loved knowing that Baekhyun could be so turned on by his body and the noises he made. He let out a soft moan, an experiment, and was rewarded with the sight of Baekhyun sucking his lower lip behind his teeth. He finally got the toy out and placed it on the bed, leaning on Baekhyun’s knee to keep himself upright. “What now?” 

“Come here.” Baekhyun beckoned, and Sehun swung a leg over his body, hovering over him. Baekhyun let out a long breath, carefully guiding Sehun’s ass to his cock. Sehun licked his lips nervously, sinking down slowly, hesitating to take it in.

“Go slow,” Baekhyun told him quietly. “Take as much time as you need. It’s okay.”

Sehun nodded silently, lips parting to breathe as he carefully lowered himself down. He whimpered as he passed the head, tiny gasps escaping his lips, face creasing in pain as he kept going.

“Hey, hey, stop,” Baekhyun said urgently, and Sehun’s descent came to a halt, looking at him. Baekhyun frowned at him worriedly. “It hurts, right?”

“A bit,” Sehun admitted, still frozen in place.

“Go _slow_ ,” Baekhyun repeated, touching his face. “We have all day. Relax. Don’t rush. It’s not meant to hurt. If it hurts, you’re going too fast. It’s okay.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, of course I’m sure.” Baekhyun patted his cheek. “I’m the one who knows what the fuck they’re doing.” He sat up, planting his face in Sehun’s chest and sucking gently on his nipple. Sehun gasped, jerking away. Baekhyun laid a hand on his back and held him in place, sucking harder until Sehun keened. “Take it easy,” Baekhyun advised him softly. “You know how it feels. That’s why you’re on top right now. Don’t worry about pleasing me for a moment. We’ll get to that later.”

“Okay,” Sehun whispered, taking a little more with a moan.

“Remember what I told you before,” Baekhyun reminded him. “Breathe, push, relax. It’s harder than you think. Concentrate.” He blew on Sehun’s damp nipple and snickered at the resultant whimper. “I know you can take it all.”

Sehun nodded, breathing deeply and distracting himself with Baekhyun’s caresses as he slowly, too slowly, took more and more dick. He let out a small sob as his cheeks finally made contact with Baekhyun’s thighs and he relaxed his weight onto Baekhyun’s lap.

“That’s it,” Baekhyun cooed, rubbing his back and kissing his throat. “You got it. Good job, baby, you’re doing so good, my precious Sehunnie, my gorgeous boy.”

Sehun just nodded, dropping his face into Baekhyun’s shoulder and panting. He felt unbelievably full, stretched wide around Baekhyun’s cock. He could feel the flush in his face; he could hear the rush in his ears.

“How does it feel?” Baekhyun whispered.

“Full,” Sehun admitted with an embarrassed chuckle. “It’s so big.”

“Not that big,” Baekhyun snorted, gently adjusting their position and lying back. “You want to move?”

Sehun nodded silently, sucking in his lips and breathing in through his nose as he carefully lifted himself half-off Baekhyun’s length and fell back down. He moaned loudly, trying again, feeling himself adjust to the girth with every bounce. His legs trembled and he struggled with keeping enough strength in them to ride without tensing his ass. He wasn’t sure he could keep this up for too long. Baekhyun’s moans mingled with his own and he looked down to see Baekhyun’s eyes closed, hands reaching for his hips as he lay back and let Sehun pleasure him. Fuck, he was pretty. Sehun felt a strange surge of pride in being responsible for that expression on his face.

“Baekhyun,” he gasped, legs finally cramping too much to allow him to continue.

Baekhyun opened his eyes. “Tired?” he smirked, and Sehun nodded, resting his weight on his knees to give his thigh muscles a break. Baekhyun tightened his grip on Sehun’s hips and thrust up, eliciting a loud cry. He began to fuck up into him steadily, pushing in deep, eagerly drinking in the sight of Sehun above him — his furrowed brow, his cute, pink, parted lips, his smooth, pale throat. Baekhyun wanted to bite it. He wanted to leave marks of ownership over his skin. But he wasn’t allowed, people would find out, so he tore his gaze away and followed the dip of Sehun’s collarbones down his broad chest, flat stomach, flushed cock standing pert over his navel. Baekhyun licked his lip, catching it behind his teeth as he pulled his hand away from Sehun’s hip and wrapped his fingers around his erection.

“ _Oh_ —” Sehun gasped, breath hitching, looking down to watch Baekhyun jerk him off, mouth falling open wider. “Yes… Baekhyun… oh, fuck…”

Baekhyun moaned, flopping back. Sehun shifted, legs moving further apart as he leaned forward to rest his weight on his arms. Baekhyun focused on his rhythm, trying not to get too close to coming. He hadn’t fucked anyone in so long. “Feel good?” he choked out, smirking at the desperate eyes Sehun flicked to him. “Look at you. You’re having a great time.”

“Y-yeah…” Sehun whimpered, whining loudly as Baekhyun ran his palm over the head of his cock. “Oh shit, oh, god, yes…”

“You _love_ taking it, don’t you.”

“ _Yes_ ,” Sehun squirmed, panting in time with Baekhyun fucking into him. “Fuck, Baekhyun, it feels so good…”

Baekhyun picked up the pace, rewarded with Sehun’s mewls. He couldn’t hold out for much longer.

“Are you going to come for me?” he breathed, tightening his grip on Sehun’s dick.

Sehun moaned, throbbing in his hand. “Please, please, please, yes, I want to come, please, Baekhyun…”

“Oh, fuck,” Baekhyun groaned, muscles tense as his rhythm faltered and he jacked furiously, watching Sehun’s face as he brought him close, excitement building in his own stomach at Sehun’s expression melting into pleasured desperation.

“ _Baek— Baekhyun!_ ” Sehun wailed, hips stuttering. “I’m coming, I’m coming, I’m—”

“Oh god, fuck, Sehun—” Baekhyun gasped back, his own orgasm hitting him like a ton of bricks at Sehun’s spilling over his hand. He slammed up, deep, the nails of his left hand digging into the skin of Sehun’s ass.

Sehun could barely feel it, blood rushing in his ears, dark spots eating at his vision. He let out a shaky breath, flopping helplessly forward onto Baekhyun’s chest. Baekhyun shivered, groaning, and wrapped his arms around Sehun’s waist, rolling them over onto their sides. His skin was burning hot against Sehun’s, sticky and sweaty and gross, but it was all he wanted.

Sehun closed his eyes and finally relaxed, smiling happily at the contrast of his pounding heart and the feather-light kisses Baekhyun pressed to his cheeks.

 

*

 

Sehun felt strange going into school the next day.

 _I’m not a virgin anymore!_ He felt like screaming, and the world seemed to be under a slightly hazy filter. Nothing had changed. But it was like everything had changed. The door to his train carriage opened with a pneumatic hiss and he looked up to see Jongin smiling at him.

“There you are,” his friend announced, joining him by the standing pole. “I just went down this whole damn train looking for you. What’s up?”

 _I got fucked_ , Sehun thought. “Not much,” he said. “Just studied and hung out with friends over the weekend.”

“Whoa, with friends? Where was my invite?” Jongin joked, placing a hand over his heart.

Sehun poked his tongue out. “I wasn’t with Kyungsoo, so I didn’t think you’d be interested,” he retorted.

Jongin laughed nervously. “But you would invite me if he was there?”

“I’d consider it,” Sehun said carefully, adjusting his grip on the pole.

“You’re like an asshole pimp,” Jongin complained. “I can get you any girl you want… for a price,” he mocked, punching Sehun in the arm. “Same with Tao and Kris. You love the power, don’t you.”

“Maybe,” Sehun admitted. _Unlike yesterday._

“You better be careful,” Jongin warned. “If Tao goes to speak to Kris by himself, your upper hand is gonna disappear in a heartbeat.”

Sehun looked him right in the eyes. “By that logic, if my power is only at risk of you going to talk to Kyungsoo of your own accord, I don’t have to worry about losing it for a long time yet.”

“That’s harsh,” Jongin whined.

“But true.”

Jongin sighed, leaning his head on Sehun’s shoulder. “I just don’t know why he hates me so much.”

“Really,” Sehun stated flatly. “You have no idea.”

Jongin frowned, hurt. “What do you mean?”

Sehun rolled his eyes. “Kyungsoo is one of my best friends,” he explained matter-of-factly, “He’s also the mom friend. He spends most of his time looking after us, and being condescending. Which, to be fair, with me, Tao, and especially Chanyeol, is kind of necessary. He cooks us food, makes sure we do our homework, and takes our hormone-driven teenaged opinions with a grain of salt.”

“Okay, so?”

Sehun stared at him with reproach. “Don’t you remember what your friends did to me?”

Jongin groaned and tipped his head back.

“Yeah, see, you got it,” Sehun nodded. “He doesn’t trust that I made the right decision in trusting you. He’s just waiting for you to fuck up so he can pamper me with comfort food, hot drinks and an ‘I told you so’.”

Jongin grabbed the left side of his shirt. “Is it bad that makes me like him more?”

“Probably, for you,” Sehun patted him on the back comfortingly. “He’ll get over it eventually. But it’s going to take some pretty hefty convincing.”

“Man,” Jongin sighed. “I’m gonna have to fight pretty hard for him, aren’t I?”

“Bro, you don’t even know. The last time I saw him give his heart to _anybody_ was the first day of school when we met Tao. He was crying. Kyungsoo doesn’t trust anyone with charisma, like you or Baekhyun.”

“Oh god, am I like Baekhyun in his mind?”

“No, you’re way worse.”

Jongin whined, dropping his head to Sehun’s shoulder again. Sehun patted his head.

“Come on, Casanova, this is our stop.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm posting this now bc i have another day of work tomorrow but mates like fuck kyungsoo's teaser got me FUCKEd up like FUCKED. UP. SOMEONE SAVE ME HE'S SO STUNNING I'M CALLING THE AUTHORITIES


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Luhan shrugged. "You guys want to go eat?”_
> 
> _“No,” Kyungsoo said quickly. “Sehun promised he’d study for his final exams this week.”_
> 
> _“Oh, come on, Kyungsoo,” Sehun whined. “We weren’t even meant to finish practice for another forty minutes…”_
> 
> _“You need to study.” Kyungsoo pointed at him. “You promised."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: M

 

 

 

Sehun invited Tao, Chanyeol and Kyungsoo to see their rehearsal on Wednesday, the second last week to the school term. He could see that Jongin was trying really, really hard to impress Kyungsoo recently, and he thought that perhaps seeing them dance together would help things along.

The gesture was not missed on Tao, who, after running his gaze over Luhan, Yixing and Jongdae, crankily dragged him to the far corner of the dance studio shortly after they arrived.

“Is Kris Wu not going to be here?” he hissed, shaking Sehun’s arm.

“No,” Sehun frowned. “Why would he? Just Luhan and Jongin are in the dance.”

“Yixing is here,” Tao insisted.

“He’s our choreographer.”

“And Jongdae.”

“He’s here to support Yixing’s choreography.”

Tao tutted in frustration. “What the hell, Sehun. _Why_ are you helping Jongin impress Kyungsoo but won’t introduce _me_ to Kris?” he jabbed himself in the chest with his finger.

“Ah, that…” Sehun scratched the back of his head. “Oh, they’re warming up, gotta go.”

“I’ll warm you up, Oh Sehun!” Tao snapped, pointing at him threateningly. “I won’t forget this!”

Sehun just stuck out his tongue, swinging his leg up onto Jongin’s shoulder to stretch.

“Ah!” Jongin yelled, stumbling and grabbing Sehun’s ankle to steady them both. Luhan and Jongdae laughed, faces scrunching. Yixing put on a BTS track to warm up to.

“Aw hell yeah,” Chanyeol raised a hand over his head and started bopping. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes, settling cross-legged against the wall. Sehun removed his leg from Jongin and jammed quietly just off center of the room, still warm from track. Jongin and Luhan stretched properly, dropping down into side lunges and swinging side to side. They chatted together, laughing and counting, Luhan giving up first at twenty four; Jongin kept going, face slowly reddening, collapsing finally at thirty five. Jongdae wandered over to the wall and dad-danced with Chanyeol; Kyungsoo put a hand over his eyes and Tao snickered, mimicking Luhan and Jongin’s warm ups, turning his ankles, stretching his legs and arms behind his back, twisting on his obliques.

“I want to see Sehun dance!” Chanyeol announced suddenly, high-fiving Jongdae as the song ended, his loud voice booming through the studio. “Start already!”

“Yeah, yeah, alright,” Sehun waved a hand. “I actually want to start, too. Yixing?”

“On it,” Yixing scrolled through his playlist to find their song. “Get your shoes on, though. You need to practice more in the ones you’re gonna be wearing.”

The three of the dancers obediently sat down by their bags to put on the expensive high-tops they’d bought the other week, and Tao let out a small whimper of envy. Sehun grinned at him, wiggling his foot tauntingly. “Jealous?”

“Shut the hell up, Sehun.”

They moved into position.

“Wait, I want to see from the front!” Chanyeol cried, running across the room and sitting happily in front of the mirror. “Okay, you can start now.”

“Chanyeol, you’re _so_ in the way,” Sehun complained, sticking his head out from behind Jongin.

“You won’t have a mirror at the contest!” Chanyeol pointed out, beaming unapologetically. “Think of me as practice.”

“He has a point,” Jongin admitted, laughing slightly. “Okay, let’s go.”

“I’m sitting at the front too, then!” Jongdae announced, moving to sit beside Chanyeol and beckoning to Tao and Kyungsoo. “Come on, this is the prime viewing seats.”

Kyungsoo and Tao dutifully moved to sit beside Chanyeol, and Luhan pulled Sehun a few steps back to make sure nobody got kicked.

“Ready?” Yixing checked from the sound board.

Jongin gave him a thumbs up and Yixing dramatically pressed play.

Sehun relaxed into the buzz of the first note. He knew this dance backwards and forwards. He could feel it in his whole body whenever he listened to the song. He jumped into motion after Jongin, before Luhan, like every time. He felt Luhan’s familiar weight on his elbows, lifted his leg the height he knew to lift it to make it over his head without kicking him. Chanyeol’s excited whoop as Luhan slid to the front was new. But it didn’t distract him for long.

His friends cheered as he took center. He grinned, feeling more energy in his limbs than he had ever before, slamming his arms out with precision. He wasn’t their Baby Sehunnie right now. He was a dancer.

Tao squealed as he body rolled against Luhan. _You ain’t seen nothing yet_ , he thought to himself, snorting as Luhan gazed up at him through his lashes and winked.

He moved into the canon sequence, counted the sixteen beats, stepped right for two, then slammed his legs out into the plié and hauled Luhan up onto his thighs.

The small audience screamed. Even Kyungsoo was grinning widely, clapping in awe as they tutted together, the three of them becoming one body of motion, four arms moving in sync. Luhan jumped down, taking center back for the rest of the second verse. Sehun danced with Jongin, the part he had watched Yixing perform the first time. He had settled into his part. It was _his_ now. He’d spent the past month and a half working together with Jongin and Luhan, he knew how they moved, how they adjusted themselves to how he moved, how long Jongin’s step was. They circled, back to back, paces equal. He hooked his elbow into Jongin’s, threw him down to slide across the floor. Luhan shot forward between them.

He danced. He didn’t need the mirror to know Jongin was perfectly reflecting him on Luhan’s other side. They’d practiced this. They’d practiced over, and over, and over, and Yixing had hounded them over, and over, and over. He was merciless and blunt. He’d told them exactly what they needed to improve. They were perfect.

Sehun was center again. Chanyeol was still cheering. Yixing was still watching with the critical eye of someone whose pride was on the line. Sehun still danced like someone who had never wanted more to impress. He felt Jongin and Luhan swap positions behind him. He _danced_.

Then the beat dropped for the song’s dance break. He turned his back to the audience, moving to the center with his arm out. He met Luhan and Jongin’s eyes. Their hands touched right above the center mark on the scuffed floor.

They flung their arms back and jumped back for two, spinning around in the triangle, facing out from the center, different angles, perfectly synchronized; they threw their arms out, pulled them in, twisted, popped, kicked their feet. Their eyes met again, they nodded on the count of four, then fell to their floor, their knees hitting the floorboards at the same split second of the downbeat. They repeated an adaptation of the tower’s tutting motion, spun around to their butts, ab rolled to the floor, legs out, legs in, right leg kick, back to an upright position. A three-way fist bump. Then they were back to facing the front, Jongin in center, for the final chorus.

Too soon, the song was over. Sehun held his final pose, the same as the starter pose — head down, hands clasped — but this time in a line parallel to the edge of the stage.

The song faded into just the roaring in Sehun’s ears. Everyone was cheering. Chanyeol was whooping loudly, clapping, flying forward to give him a hug.

And just like that, he was their Baby Sehunnie again. He brought his arms up to pat Chanyeol’s back, laughing, panting, trying to catch his breath. Chanyeol was squeezing him way too tight.

“Yeol… can’t breathe…” he gasped, and Chanyeol pulled away quickly, stumbling slightly on his gangly legs.

Jongdae ran over to Yixing to offer him a quiet kiss and congratulations.

“You guys are gonna win for sure,” Tao cried, bouncing excitedly. “That was amazing!”

“Sehun, you’re so good,” Kyungsoo complimented, also coming over to Sehun. Chanyeol was almost vibrating.

“Jongin’s awesome, right?” Sehun checked with him, indicating his friend, hanging off Luhan.

Kyungsoo hesitated, but although he was by nature a solemn and suspicious person, he was also honest. “Yeah,” he admitted, and even gave Jongin a pat on the arm. “You are very good.”

Luhan looked over at the soundboard. “Yixing, you want us to go over anything?”

Yixing just flapped a hand dismissively then returned it to Jongdae’s face, universal gesture for “Leave me alone, I’m making out with my boyfriend.”

Luhan shrugged. “I guess we can go home, then,” he said happily. “Give these two lovebirds some space. You guys want to go eat?”

“No,” Kyungsoo said quickly. “Sehun promised he’d study for his final exams this week.”

“Oh, come on, Kyungsoo,” Sehun whined. “We weren’t even meant to finish practice for another forty minutes…”

“You need to study.” Kyungsoo pointed at him. “You promised. That’s forty extra minutes of study time which could mean twenty extra points overall. You too,” he swung around and pointed at Chanyeol and Tao. “We’re going straight back home.”

“Alright,” Sehun sighed in defeat. “Let me just change out of this ridiculous thing,” he requested, indicating his bright orange uniform.

“Yeah, okay.” Kyungsoo conceded. “If you try to run away, though, I will end you.”

“When have I ever run from you, Kyungsoo?” Sehun rolled his eyes, picking up his regular uniform and heading to the bathrooms.

Kyungsoo stared at Jongin when he’d left, a steady gaze in the eyes that had Jongin scratching his nose self-consciously.

“I have to thank you,” Kyungsoo said eventually.

“Huh?” Jongin squeaked.

“I haven’t seen Sehun care about something this much for a long time. He really missed dancing. Thank you.”

“I, uh,” Jongin scrambled for words. “It was nothing?” he tried.

“Hm.” Kyungsoo turned back to Chanyeol and Tao and pushed them to go collect their bags. Jongin stared at him in shock, frozen to the spot.

Luhan came up and leaned on his shoulder. “What a queer,” he commented quietly, and Jongin punched him in the side.

“Shut up.”

Luhan kept his voice down so Kyungsoo wouldn’t hear, but didn’t stop. “You’re so gay.”

“Shut _up_.”

“You’re in _love_.”

Jongin glared. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed how you look at Sehun.”

Luhan had a mysterious coughing fit all of a sudden. “My lips are sealed.”

“Yeah. That’s what I thought.” Jongin patted Luhan on the back. “Come on, let’s go eat.”

 

*

 

Sehun glanced down at his phone as he sat beside Tao on the bus.

_seHUN_

_what?_

_kYUNGSOO TLAKED TO ME_

_congratulations :)_

_i’m cryIGN  
_ _Ur the bEST I LOVE U_

_No worries man_

Tao glanced over at the conversation. “I hate you.”

“You’ll get your turn. Calm down.”

Tao snorted and folded his arms sulkily. “Yeah. I’ll believe that when I see it.”

*

 

Baekhyun stroked Sehun’s hair as the younger boy curled into his side, coming down from the dominating persona that had been a lot stronger this time. Sehun’s soft begging and submissive pleas echoed in his mind and he smiled to himself. He did like Sehun. He’d been a good friend this half-year, always respectful, always caring, defending him to his other friends. Baekhyun appreciated his company. But he was not in love.

He wondered what dating Chanyeol would be like.

He wondered if he’d miss Sehun.

Maybe he would.

“Chanyeol tells me you’re really good at dancing,” he said out loud, wrapping a strand of Sehun’s hair around his finger.

Sehun looked up at him. “Really?”

“Yeah, he’s barely shut up about you all week. He’s like your ultimate fanboy. Sehun this, Sehun that, Sehun is so cool, Sehun is so good at dancing, Sehun is amazing, Sehun, Sehun, Sehun.” He snickered. “It’s quite endearing.”

Sehun giggled shyly, nuzzling back against Baekhyun’s chest. “You’re coming to the show, right?”

“Of course.” Baekhyun nodded. “Groups of hot boys showing off for three hours? As if I’d miss it.”

Sehun laughed.

Baekhyun hesitated, taking a deep breath in and out. “It’s going to be our first date,” he confessed quietly.

“Good,” Sehun stated. So giving Baekhyun’s ticket to Chanyeol had worked out, then.

Baekhyun hummed, laying his palm flat against Sehun’s shoulder. “I guess this is going to stop, then.”

“We’ve got a few more weeks,” Sehun shrugged. “Why? Are you going to miss me?”

Baekhyun hesitated again. “Yeah, I think so.”

Sehun groaned. “Don’t be like that. You won’t regret it, I’m 100 percent sure. You’re going to adore Chanyeol. I mean you already do.”

“I mean… yeah,” Baekhyun sighed.

“Anyway, after this, maybe we can be proper friends,” Sehun chuckled. “You know, instead of avoiding the crap out of each other at school so nobody finds out we’re banging. You’re not going to be able to avoid me if you’re Chanyeol’s boyfriend.”

“Chanyeol’s boyfriend,” Baekhyun repeated slowly. “Oh my god.”

“Relax.” Sehun rolled his eyes. “You’ll get to take his virginity, too. That’ll be fun, right?”

Baekhyun laughed, terror underlying the sound. “Oh my god.”

“Hey.” Sehun sat up, rubbing Baekhyun’s chest. “You love him, right?”

Baekhyun stared at him desperately. “I don’t know.”

“Of course you don’t, you’re panicking. Think about it. Think about all the time you spent with him. Think about all the things he did for you. Think about the way he looks at you, the way he speaks to you, the way he speaks about you. Now think about what he looks like to you. How do you see him? What do you do to him? How do you speak to him? What do you think about when you’re by yourself?”

Baekhyun bit his lip, hiding his face in Sehun’s leg.

“Do you love him?” Sehun asked again, softly, after giving him a moment to think.

Baekhyun nodded once.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Baekhyun looked up, pouting. “Yeah, I love him.”

Sehun smiled, patting his head. “There you go, then.”

Baekhyun had to admit, he felt a bit better. No choice ever came without other options. No decision ever came without the potential for regret. He zoned back to the present when he realized Sehun was still talking.

“…but you know, I am first and foremost his friend. So if I hear you’re cheating on him, I’m going to beat you up myself.”

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow. “I thought you didn’t fight.”

“It won’t be a fight. I’ll kill you flat out.” He poked his fingers into Baekhyun’s side to see him squirm. “I know all of your weak spots.”

Baekhyun gazed at him flatly. “Is that meant to convince me to _not_ cheat on him?”

“Hey!”

Baekhyun sat up swiftly, grabbing Sehun’s hair and pushing his face close. “Don’t forget I know all of your weak spots, too.”

Sehun wrinkled his nose and pushed him away. “I’m trying to lecture you on being faithful to my best friend, here.”

Baekhyun snickered. “Oh, Sehun, you know the only one I’d cheat with is you.”

“Well, that’s good then.” Sehun folded his arms. “Because as soon as you two are together, I’m dropping you like a hot potato.”

Baekhyun pouted, clawing at Sehun’s crossed arms. “Aren’t you going to miss me?”

“Maybe a little,” Sehun admitted. “But I’m kind of excited to get to know you as a friend.”

Well, that was a nice way of putting it. Baekhyun could live with that.

“Aren’t we already friends?” is what he said out loud.

Sehun pulled a face. “Let’s be real, we’re more benefits than friends at this point.”

“That’s true.” Baekhyun let go and looked around for his pants. “Well, we have a couple of weeks left, anyway. Let’s have fun.”

“I’m down for fun.” Sehun smiled and pulled his own pants back on. “You’ll be fine. As someone I know likes to say a lot,” he leaned in cheekily. “Concentrate on relaxing. It’s harder than it sounds.”

 

*

 

“LAST DAY!” Jongin screeched as soon as he had a chance to speak to Sehun after math. Another girl from their class whooped beside him and Jongin gave her a high-five, draping himself over Sehun. “I am _so_ excited.”

“I would’ve never guessed,” Sehun commented dryly, still reeling from the exam.

Baekhyun came up behind them and pushed in between their bodies, swinging one arm over each of their shoulders. “Good game, boys,” he sighed happily. “Sehun, where are you eating today?”

“I’m going to Jongdae’s tonight, so I thought I’d sit with Kyungsoo,” Sehun replied.

“Cool, I’ll come with then,” Baekhyun smiled. “Jongin?”

“Yeah I’ll join in,” Jongin nodded. “Quad?”

Sehun nodded, and the three of them headed towards the quadrangle together. Sehun began to calm down a little, allowing himself the lunch hour to relax before his next exam.

Or not.

He and Baekhyun both stopped dead at the door to the quadrangle, glancing at each other in horror. Kyungsoo was sitting by himself under a tree, watching silently as a group of guys that Sehun was _very_ familiar with shredded his bag and threw his notes to the wind, laughing uproariously.

“ _Hey!_ ” Jongin roared, extracting himself and sprinting across the quad.

Sehun was frozen solid, fear slipping through every vein, preventing his limbs from functioning. Baekhyun was gripping his arm, nails digging into his skin. “Sehun,” he whispered.

The bullies saw Jongin coming and pegged Kyungsoo’s lunch at him. Rice and meat flew everywhere; Jongin ran through it, batting the plastic container away from his face. He punched the leader in the face without hesitation and the other five guys immediately swarmed on him, holding him back.

“Sehun, we have to do something,” Baekhyun hissed.

“I can’t fight,” Sehun mumbled pathetically, unable to look away.

Baekhyun stared at him desperately for a second, then let go of his arm, casting one look over his shoulder as he ran to help Jongin. Kyungsoo took advantage of the chaos to try to collect his exam notes. He screamed as one of them stomped on his hand and Jongin swung wildly at the sound, kicking, elbowing, biting. Baekhyun threw himself into the mess, taking a fist to the gut as he tried to pull one of them off Jongin.

“Sehun,” Chanyeol’s cheery voice came from the hall. “What happened?” he followed up immediately upon seeing his face.

“Help Kyungsoo,” was all Sehun could choke out, pointing at the fight in the quad. Chanyeol was gone in half a second, pelting across the cobbles to join the fight.

Sehun still couldn’t move. His brain was blank. He didn’t know what the fuck he could do. Kyungsoo was cradling his hand, yelling at Chanyeol to _stop, don’t fight,_ and Jongin was howling obscenities as he struggled to get to the leader. Baekhyun was getting badly overwhelmed by two of the boys, and Chanyeol diverted his attention to saving him, leaving Jongin to deal with the other four alone. They wrestled him to the ground, slamming his head against the stones. The leader circled the brawl slowly, surveying his lackeys with approval. He took the liberty of kicking Jongin in the ribs before hauling Kyungsoo up by his blazer and pulling him to his chest. Sehun caught a flash of metal in the midday summer sun.

It was the box cutter they’d used to slash his bag.

Sehun couldn’t breathe, the world slipping into slow motion as he saw Jongin look up and freeze; Chanyeol finally got the younger two away from Baekhyun and fell to the ground, shielding him with his body as he tried to help him up, then looked up at the leader’s call for silence and gaped.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, down the school corridor, Sehun saw him.

Joonmyun.

“Joonmyun,” he gasped, finally finding his voice and motion. “Joonmyun!” he cried out again, louder, and the head boy looked up. “There’s a fight,” he said desperately, pointing a shaking finger at the quad. “There’s a _knife_.”

Joonmyun’s eyes widened and he set off without a word, whipping his phone out of his pocket and calmly snapping photos of the incident as he strode across the quadrangle. Sehun followed him on shaky legs, his mind completely devoid of thought. All that was left were loud sounds and bright colours, screaming at him from every angle.

“Let him go,” Joonmyun ordered, putting his phone back into his pocket. “Now.”

The leader of the group slowly retracted the blade back into the handle and stepped back, holding up his hands. Sehun caught Kyungsoo as he fell, pulling him back to safety. Behind Joonmyun. He’d never respected the senior student as much as he did in that moment. Everyone slowly picked themselves up. Baekhyun leaned against Chanyeol. Jongin wiped blood off his face.

“Sehun, you can go.” Joonmyun said coldly. “Everyone else, office. Move. Now.”

“I want to stay with Kyungsoo,” Sehun protested.

“Fine. Get moving.” Joonmyun held out an arm and waited for everyone to shuffle past him, following them closely as they headed towards the principal’s office.

Joonmyun seated them all in the row of chairs outside the door, then went inside by himself to preface the situation. The corridor was eerily quiet. Even Chanyeol had nothing to say. Sehun gripped Kyungsoo’s good hand, eyeing the nasty, swollen knuckles on the other. The boys across from them said nothing, shifting nervously; Sehun sneered to himself, reveling in their expressions. They had hurt him — they had hurt his friends — but in the face of authority they were sniveling wrecks. It gave him a strange thrum of satisfaction.

“Sehun, your phone,” Kyungsoo finally said, addressing the annoying buzz disturbing the silence.

Sehun drew out his phone, scrolling through the string of texts from Tao. _Tao_. He’d forgotten.

_Hey where are you guys?_  
_Sehunnnnn why is nobody replying to me_  
_Where are you???_  
_I can’t find you anywhere_  
_This isn’t funnnnyyyyyyyy_  
_Are you hiding from me????_  
_Seriously where are you??_  
_Did something happen?????_  
_Sehun!_  
_Sehun!  
_ _Where are you!_

_There was a fight.  
_ _We’re at the office. Don’t come._

_Whaaaaaaaat  
_ _What happened?_

Sehun looked up as the office door opened and the principal appeared, glowering with the rage of a thousand suns.

_Principal here. Tell you later. Can’t talk._

“You.” The principal pointed at the oldest bully. “And you.” He pointed at Kyungsoo. “Inside.”

“Sir,” Kyungsoo said calmly, shaking in Sehun’s grip. “My finger is broken.”

The principal gritted his teeth. “Get the nurse,” he snapped at Joonmyun, who scurried off immediately. He jerked his head again and this time Kyungsoo stood up, giving Sehun’s hand a light squeeze before he filed into the office.

“I could be expelled,” Jongin groaned under his breath, slumping in his seat on Sehun’s other side. “Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

“It’s going to be okay,” Sehun whispered back. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Being involved in a fight at all is something wrong when it comes to administration,” Jongin snapped back quietly, then passed a hand over his swelling eye. “Sorry. I’m not mad at you.” He looked down at his hands. “My grades are shit, and I have a history with those guys and the police,” he explained. “Sehun, I could really be in trouble.”

Sehun didn’t know what to say. He held out a hand silently and Jongin stared at it for a moment before taking it, sliding his fingers between Sehun’s.

He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, slinging one leg over his knee.

There was nothing to do but wait for the verdict.

 

*

 

It was half an hour before the door finally opened again. Everyone sat up straight as just Kyungsoo, Joonmyun and the principal emerged. Kyungsoo’s hand had been splinted, his eyes empty, expression blank.

“You five.” The principal gestured at Kisook’s crew of bullies. “Get inside now. The rest of you can go.”

Loud protests began to erupt from the group and the principal held up a hand. “I don’t want to hear it,” he roared. “I have heard _enough_. _Get_ inside my office _immediately_.”

“What about Kai?” one of the boys wailed, pointing accusingly at Jongin.

“ _I will not repeat myself_.” The principal snapped, slamming the door against the wall. Everyone flinched at the sound. The protests faded to mutters and the five of the older boys filed into the office.

“Have a good holiday,” the principal insincerely addressed the remaining students, and closed the door.

“What happened?” Sehun demanded, reaching out to Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo stayed where he was standing.

“They believed me,” he said simply, devoid of emotion. “Kisook tried to spin some crap but he has a shit record and mine is outstanding. Joonmyun only showed him photos of me. Not the actual fight. I’m going home. Then probably to the hospital. Mom’s coming to get me. The rest of you have to take your exams.”

“That’s it?” Jongin breathed. Sehun’s eyes flicked to Joonmyun, who was determinedly staring at Kyungsoo’s shoulder and avoiding his gaze.

“That’s all I know.”

“Should we wait here with you until your mom comes?” Chanyeol asked.

“No. She’ll be a while. You have to take your exams.” Kyungsoo continued flatly. “Go find Tao. He’s probably worried.”

“How’s your hand?” Jongin asked tentatively.

“It’s broken.” Kyungsoo stated.

“Kyungsoo…” Sehun murmured. “Are you sure you’ll be alright by yourself?”

“I’ll be here,” Joonmyun said softly. “I’ll stay with him until Mrs. Do arrives.”

“Her name is Choi,” Kyungsoo corrected automatically, his monotone starting to make him sound like a robot. “Do is my father.”

“He’s in shock,” Joonmyun explained, carefully pushing Kyungsoo down into a chair. “He’s had to talk a lot just now. You should all go to your classes. There’s only a few minutes left of lunch.”

The four of them stood up reluctantly, casting uneasy glances at Kyungsoo, who was staring blankly at the opposite wall.

“Joonmyun,” Jongin started, chewing his lip. “Thank you. For leaving us out of it.”

Joonmyun gazed at him with tired eyes. “Don’t make me regret it,” was all he said.

“I won’t,” Jongin promised fervently, bowing slightly. “Thank you.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOOOOOOOOOOO BOYYYYYYYYYYYYY IF I THOUGHT KSOO'S TEASER GOT ME FUCKED UP I WAS N O T PREPARED FOR THAT MV TO DROP HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT I'M NOT OKAY????? I'M??????? HELP???????????????????? i'm not even coherent right now my brain is mush I can't believe I love every single one of them with my whole soul???? 
> 
> akjsd;lkfjalsdfj sorry i haven't been keeping up with comments i'll reply to you all as soon as i can!!


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”_
> 
> _Sehun shrieked, banging his head on the locker door as Luhan’s chirpy voice screeched at him from very close to his ear._
> 
> _“I’M ON THE PHONE,” he yelled, rubbing his head. “FUCK OFF.”_
> 
> _“MY BAD,” Luhan screamed back. “WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG

 

 

 

“Should we come see you?” Sehun asked, head in his locker to drown out the noise of everyone cheering for the end of school behind him.

“No, it’s okay,” Kyungsoo murmured back, sounding exhausted. “I’m going to spend some time with my mom tonight. She’s pretty freaked out. We’re going to eat and watch a movie at home together.”

“That sounds nice.” Sehun hummed, closing his eyes and plugging his free ear with a finger. “And you? How are you feeling?”

“Pretty high on painkillers,” Kyungsoo admitted. “I’m fine. Just glad I don’t have to go back to school tomorrow.” His voice dropped to a quiet, vulnerable tone. “They didn’t even hurt me and I’m scared. I don’t know how you managed to come to school this term, Sehun.”

“It’s going to be okay.” Sehun soothed him, “There’s been some gossip going around. I heard they got arrested. In any case, you won’t have to worry about them for a while.”

Kyungsoo was silent for a while.

“How were your exams?” he asked finally, and Sehun felt tears spring to his eyes. Even after being threatened with a knife and having his hand broken, he still cared about Sehun’s day.

“Fine,” he whispered down the line, voice cracking.

“Sehun, don’t cry,” Kyungsoo said calmly. “I’m the one allowed to cry right now, okay?”

“Okay.”

“You’re going out with the Chinese seniors tonight, right?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

“Please go,” Kyungsoo urged him. “Don’t stress me out making me worry about you being by yourself tonight.”

“Kyungsoo…”

“Can I ask you a favour?”

“Of course you can,” Sehun said quickly. “Anything you want.”

“Three favours, actually.”

“Anything,” Sehun stressed. “Anything I can do for you.”

Kyungsoo sighed, a rush of white noise on the line. “Firstly, stop worrying about me. I’m completely fine, and to be honest, I wouldn’t have blamed you if you’d just run. You did the best you possibly could have done in finding Joonmyun. Thank you.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Sehun cringed, guilt twisting his insides. “He was just passing. I couldn’t even move.”

“You did everything right,” Kyungsoo insisted. “There was no point in you coming over and getting beat up again. You diffused the situation and alerted authorities. That’s absolutely what you should have done.”

Sehun sighed. “What are the other favours?” he asked after a moment.

Kyungsoo cleared his throat. “Take Chanyeol and Tao tonight, if you can. They probably need to be looked after as well. Plus, don’t think I didn’t notice that you’re trying to make me like Jongin. You owe Tao an introduction too.”

“You got me,” Sehun chuckled through tears. “But you’re right, I’ve been seriously ditching you guys lately. I’ll ask Jongdae if they can come over.”

“Good.” Kyungsoo hesitated, the extended silence cutting the white noise in the phone. “Um, and the other thing is…”

“Yeah?”

“Can you,” Kyungsoo coughed. “Can you thank Jongin for me?”

Sehun paused, barely believing his ears. “What?”

He could almost hear Kyungsoo roll his eyes. “Jongin is an idiot, but he did come to help me. It’s only polite to thank him.”

“I’ll pass it on,” Sehun promised. “Anything else?”

“Come see me tomorrow.”

“I will. Definitely.”

“Let’s eat together.”

“I’d love that.”

“I have another call,” Kyungsoo excused himself. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Yeah. Take care, Kyungsoo. Stay safe.”

“You too, Sehun.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Sehun hung up, resting his head against the cool metal of his locker.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

Sehun shrieked, banging his head on the locker door as Luhan’s chirpy voice screeched at him from _very_ close to his ear.

“I’M ON THE PHONE,” he yelled, rubbing his head. “FUCK OFF.”

“MY BAD,” Luhan screamed back. “WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?”

“Kyungsoo,” Sehun put his phone down and started to pack his books into his bag. “He got attacked today.”

Luhan’s face fell swiftly into a serious glare. “What happened?”

“Those guys went after him with a knife. He broke his hand. He went home at lunchtime.”

“They _what_?”

“He’s fine,” Sehun said hurriedly. “They didn’t cut him or stab him or anything, they wouldn’t dare to do that, they just wanted to scare him, but it worked. He’s spending the night with his mom.”

Luhan looked very pale. “Holy shit.”

“He just told me he’s okay,” Sehun explained. “He doesn’t want anyone to worry about him. He’s jut going to relax with his family for a while and take it easy. What’s up?”

“Uh,” Luhan shook his head, “I was just going to tell you that we were planning to go bowling tonight, but…”

“No, no, I’m down for bowling,” Sehun said calmly. “Can I bring my friends though? Kyungsoo doesn’t want guests and they’ll be worried about him. It will be good to take our mind off things.”

“Um, sure,” Luhan said hesitantly. “Are you sure you’re up to it?”

“Yeah.” Sehun zipped up his bag, closed his locker for the last time for a couple of months, and stood up straight. “It’ll be fun.”

“Okay…” Luhan agreed reluctantly. “If you really think so…”

“I want to go,” Sehun stated decisively. “I’ll ask Chanyeol, Tao and Jongin, is that okay?”

“Yeah.” Luhan scratched the back of his head. “Actually, we had planned to ask you to bring your friends as well. I guess…” he laughed nervously. “I guess that all works out, then?”

Sehun smiled at him encouragingly. “Yeah. Sometimes things just fall into place. Let’s give Kyungsoo some time to recover.”

“Awesome.” Luhan smiled back. “Let’s go?”

“Let’s go.”

 

*

 

“WHAT TEAM?” Luhan yelled over his friends’ raucous chatting, shaking the lane booking sheet. The poor attendant looked like he had had a long day, gazing miserably at the crowd of overexcited high school students.

“Seniors vs. second years!” Chanyeol bellowed back, clinging tight to Baekhyun, who he’d dragged along. “Wait…” he did a quick head count. “Yeah, that works. Five each.”

“SPEAK NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE,” Luhan howled, pen poised threateningly over the form. Everyone ignored him for their own conversations, and Luhan rolled his eyes as he started writing. He handed the sheet back to the attendant, who took it silently and started plugging the names into the computer.

“You’re on lanes 10 and 11,” he said listlessly, waving them to the far end of the counter. “You can go get your shoes there.”

“FELLAS, LET’S MOVE,” Luhan hollered, herding his friends to where an equally dead-eyed attendant was waiting to hand out shoes.

Sehun smiled as he watched Tao animatedly tell Kris something, and the smile on Kris’ face as he replied happily. Yixing interjected a couple of times, and Jongdae was comparing shoe sizes with Minseok. Chanyeol was flirting heavily with Baekhyun, the two of them off in their own little world, so Sehun sat down next to Luhan and Jongin and started to take his shoes off.

Luhan was done in no time, springing to his feet excitedly. “I’m going to the bar! Who’s legal?” he called out over his friends, and several heads snapped up. Chanyeol’s face fell as Baekhyun raised a hand and waved it above his head.

“Me! I want a drink,” he said excitedly, and Chanyeol pouted.

“Since when are you nineteen?” he whined.

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow, clambering to his feet. “Since May,” he replied easily, waving a hand.

“You didn’t tell me!”

Baekhyun shrugged. “Well, I’m nineteen. And I’m going to get a drink.”

“Luhan,” Sehun pouted as well, pulling on Luhan’s sleeve. “Get me one?”

“No.” Luhan stuck out his tongue, “That’s what you get for being underage.”

“Nooooo,” Sehun whined, tugging harder. “Please?”

“Nope.” Luhan shook his head decisively. “You can catch up when we go back to Jongdae’s after.”

“You’re mean.”

“You love me.”

Jongin snorted loudly.

“Shut up, Jongin, you’re not getting any either,” Sehun grumbled, tugging petulantly on his shoelaces. Luhan bent down, glancing around for anyone who might see, then lightly pecked Sehun on the lips. “I’ll be right back to kick your ass.”

“You wish. Our team has Jongin. You guys don’t stand a chance.”

“Ooh,” Luhan wiggled his eyebrows. “We’ll see about that.” He waved slightly then ran off to the bar with the rest of the seniors and Baekhyun.

The rest of them wandered over to lane ten, dumping their bags on the seats.

“Oh, no,” Sehun said suddenly, glancing up at the screens.

“What?” Jongin asked, following his gaze, then laughing. “Okay, we maybe shouldn’t have let Luhan put our names down for us.”

“Unbelievable,” Sehun sighed. “So what — are you Krong?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Jongin shrugged. “I mean Panda is obviously Tao and Longbean has to be Chanyeol.”

“Amazing,” Sehun deadpanned. “So we have Krong, Longbean, Panda, Bacon and Baby Carrot against…” he craned his neck to see the screen in lane eleven. “…Galaxy, Baozi, Mama Unicorn, Orange, and… The Ultimate Champion. Typical.”

“Who the hell is he calling a long bean?” Chanyeol folded his arms while Tao laughed uproariously. “That does it. We have to beat him.”

“You’re only feeling this now?” Jongin snorted. “Man, you need to work on your fighting spirit.”

The seniors found their way back and piled onto the upholstered bench, dumping their drinks on the table lined up with lane eleven. Baekhyun skipped over to Chanyeol, daintily holding his beer by the neck of the bottle as he sat down beside the taller boy. Sehun reached over to take Luhan’s drink out of his hands. “Thanks.”

“No!” Luhan screeched, whipping the bottle away and spilling some on his hand. “Fuck. Piss off, Sehun! I am a responsible adult and you will not have any of this alcohol!”

Sehun widened his eyes and furrowed his brows, hanging off the back of the chair and looking up into Luhan’s eyes with his _best_ puppy dog face. “Please?”

“Stop looking at me like that! No!”

“ _Please_?”

Luhan scowled. “ _One_ sip,” he begrudgingly relented, keeping a hold of the bottle as he pushed it to Sehun’s lips. Sehun cheered, following the bottle with his head as Luhan tried to pull it away. “ _That’s a sip! I said a sip_!” Luhan whined, hugging the bottle to his chest. “My god, I’m going to get in trouble for supplying alcohol to a minor. Stop taking advantage of me.”

“Okay, okay. After this,” Sehun agreed, shooting forward to give him a quick kiss before settling back on his side of the seat with a cheeky grin. Luhan blushed, grumbling under his breath about sneaky brats.

“Let’s bowl,” Kris announced, standing up and waving at Jongin. “You’re up, Krong.”

“Whenever you’re ready, Galaxy,” Jongin sneered back, testing the weight of the balls in the return.

“We’re going to kick your rookie asses.”

“You wish, old man,” Jongin shot back with a smirk.

 

*

 

The score was close at the 8th frame. Sehun’s team had tallied up a total of 687, riding on Jongin’s individual 200, and the Seniors were on 652 on Yixing and Minseok’s 180 apiece. Chanyeol had thrown so many gutterballs trying to do an impressive spin but Baekhyun, pumped up on mixed spirits, continued to cheer him on anyway. Their corner was _loud_ , the seniors riding the high of tipsiness and Sehun’s team riding the high of victory.

“We can still make it!” Luhan wailed, lying sideways on the bench with his leg draped over Jongdae’s shoulders. “Yifan I swear to _god_ if you miss another spare…”

Kris rolled his eyes, lining up his ball.

Baekhyun extracted himself from Chanyeol and moved to sit beside Sehun, leaning over the back of the bench to tap Jongdae on the shoulder.

Jongdae turned around, a faint smile on his lips. “Yes?”

“You’re Kim Jongdae, right?”

“Byun Baekhyun!” Jongdae finger gunned at Baekhyun. “I thought you’d never notice.”

Baekhyun’s face split into a huge grin. Sehun blinked. “We did primary together!”

“We shared lunch!”

“We had sleepovers and stuff!”

“Then our moms had that huge bitch fight!”

“And we weren’t allowed to talk to each other anymore!”

“Holy crap!” Jongdae grinned, leaning on the back of the bench and resting his head in a hand, combing his fingers through his hair. “I hear you’re about as big of a slut as me these days.”

“Maybe more,” Baekhyun smirked.

“You out to your parents?”

“Never in a million years.”

They high fived over the bench, clasping hands for a second.

“You two know each other?” Luhan asked cautiously.

“Funny how things turn out,” Jongdae confirmed. “Small world.”

“That’s so weird.” Sehun commented.

“We were best friends, back in the day,” Baekhyun said, letting go of Jongdae’s hand. “This is mad, dude. You grew up damn fucking well.”

“Same to you.”

“SPLIT! Fucking shit, Yifan!” Luhan interrupted, attention back on the game.

“Shut up, Luhan! Nobody asked you!” Kris yelled back, stomping petulantly to the ball return to take his second shot.

Sehun leaned over the seat and poked Luhan’s nose while Baekhyun and Jongdae started complimenting each other’s face. “You’re going down.”

“On you?” Luhan grinned up at him, nipping at his fingers. Sehun whipped his hand away. Luhan grabbed it and put his index finger in his mouth, puffing out his cheeks exaggeratedly as he sucked. Sehun yanked his hand back again, wrinkling his nose as he wiped Luhan’s spit on his own face.

“You’re drunk.”

“You love it.”

“Ew.” Sehun snorted, heaving himself over the seat to briefly peck him on the lips. Luhan settled back in satisfaction, and Sehun rolled his eyes. “I need to pee,” he announced.

“Go pee,” Luhan nodded, turning his attention back to Baekhyun and Jongdae, who were watching them interact, Jongdae with an amused smirk and Baekhyun with vaguely disguised shock.

Sehun stood up and adjusted his shirt, winking at Baekhyun as he passed by to the bathroom. Baekhyun watched him go, expression frozen.

Sehun sighed as he pissed in the dingy urinal, alone in the bathroom. The fluorescents made it look darker than it was, and hurt his eyes. He wandered over to the sink and inspected his face as he washed his hands, wrinkling his nose at a small spot beginning to appear on his cheek.

He was already waving his hands through the pathetically feeble gust of the cheap hand dryer when the door opened. He looked up to see Baekhyun come in, a small frown marring his brow.

“Hey,” Sehun greeted, and Baekhyun scowled deeper, grabbing him by the shirt and shoving him against the wall before kissing him violently.

“Whoa,” Sehun cautioned him, pushing him away. “What’s wrong?”

“Why are you kissing Luhan so much?” Baekhyun demanded, shaking Sehun roughly. “What are you doing?”

“Baekhyun.” Sehun grasped Baekhyun’s wrists and tried to pry his shirt free. “I kiss Luhan all the time.”

“No!” Baekhyun pounded a fist on Sehun’s chest. “You can’t! You belong to me! You said so!”

Sehun’s heart sank. “Baek,” he said softly. “That’s not real. That’s just roleplay.”

“No.” Baekhyun’s lip trembled. “You’re mine.”

“Oh…” Sehun pulled Baekhyun into his arms, trying to calm him down while Baekhyun punched him, halfheartedly but repeatedly, in the back. “Why are you so upset, Baek? We knew this was going to end soon anyway.”

“Not _yet_ ,” Baekhyun snapped, kissing him again. Sehun responded hesitantly and pulled away quickly, cautious of anyone else catching them. “We were supposed to have two more weeks. This wasn’t supposed to be _over_. This is not right!”

“Hey, it’s alright,” Sehun soothed him softly, taking his face and gently thumbing his cheekbone. “It’s okay, Baekhyun, you’re going to be fine. Aren’t you on a date with Chanyeol right now?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Baekhyun yelled, clenching splayed hands in front of his chest. “That’s the fucking problem, Sehun. What the fuck. It can’t be over. I’m not done. I still need you.”

“Baekhyun, you don’t need me.” Sehun leaned forward to gently kiss his forehead. “You never did. We were just messing around for fun.”

Two individual tears escaped Baekhyun’s lashes, running down his cheeks. “Well, maybe I’m not finished having fun!”

“Sure you’re not.” Sehun agreed, hitching a smile onto his face. “You’re going out with Park Chanyeol. The fun never stops.”

“I’m not… I’m not…” Baekhyun’s face crumpled and he started gasping for air through his sobs. Sehun pulled him back in, stroking the back of his head.

“I’m gonna miss you too,” he whispered, “It’s hard to let things go. I know. But everything is going to be fine, I promise. You love him. He loves you.”

Baekhyun said nothing, clinging tight as he cried quietly into Sehun’s shirt. The door opened again and Sehun shifted his body slightly to shield him from view, but relaxed as he saw Chanyeol come in with worry splashed over his overly-expressive face. He jerked his head to beckon him over; Chanyeol approached hesitantly, taking in the scene in front of him.

“Baekhyun?” he asked, and Baekhyun stiffened in Sehun’s arms. Sehun carefully pried him off, nudging him over to Chanyeol. To his relief, Baekhyun went, keeping his head down as he let Chanyeol wrap him up and murmur to him softly. He pat Chanyeol on the back once, leaving them be.

He chewed absently on his thumbnail as he went back to the lane. Perhaps he should _do_ something. He already knew that Baekhyun had commitment issues, and was panicking about dating Chanyeol, but if he was really this upset about it…

Chanyeol deserved better.

But if he said so, he’d have to admit to everything — their entire relationship that he’d lied so strongly about for so long. Then he’d have to explain why he lied. Then the shit would start, dealing with Baekhyun after he’d already accepted he had to let him go, dealing with Chanyeol trying to decide whether or not to continue pursuing Baekhyun… there was just too much drama. Sehun was quite enjoying his drama-free life, thank you very much.

But Chanyeol was his friend. And Chanyeol deserved someone who could love him unreservedly. And Sehun was no longer convinced that Baekhyun was that person.

Jongin waved at him as he approached. “Come on, Sehun, hurry up, it’s your turn. These assholes are catching up.”

“Eat our dust!” Luhan yelled.

Sehun rolled his eyes, marching to the lane and lining up his shot, pushing his worries to the back of his mind so he could focus. He was not going to lose to a guy who named himself The Ultimate Champion.

No freaking way.

 

*

 

They won.

“WE WIN!’” Jongin and Tao screeched, raising victorious arms above their heads, while the seniors let out various groans of protest.

“Suck it, Luhan!” Jongin crowed, raising the ‘loser’ gesture to his forehead.

“ _Fuck_ off,” Luhan yelled back, standing up and bumping chests with Jongin. “Don’t be a bad winner!”

“Don't be a sore loser,” Jongin snorted, wiggling his chin and smirking widely.

“It’s not like you’re good! We were just brought down by Yifan and Jongdae _sucking_.”

“Only a loser blames his team mates,” Jongin laughed. “We had Chanyeol and we still what? We still _won_.”

“Hey, I resent that,” Chanyeol piped up, but they both ignored him.

“Suck my _dick_.”

“Who wants your crusty dick!” Luhan finally lost control of his face and started laughing. “Ah, good game, Jongin.”

“You too, man.” Jongin wrapped an arm around Luhan’s shoulders and pointed at Yixing. “You, dude, you’re good. We should play together another time.”

Yixing laughed. “For sure. You better bring that fighting spirit to the dance contest, too.”

“I don’t know any other way to dance,” Jongin sniffed.

Jongdae stood up, stretching his arms over his head. “Shall we go out and eat?”

“Are the losers paying?” Chanyeol asked cheekily.

“NO,” Sehun yelled, pointing at Jongdae. “No way, dude. I have been fucking _waiting_ , you’ve had your fun — we are going straight back to your place. I need to _drink_.”

“Okay, okay, shit, dude,” Jongdae held his hands up. “We’ll stop on the way back and get takeout, damn.”

“Aren’t you a little young to be an alcoholic?” Kris interjected, unlacing his bowling shoes.

“Aren’t you a little old to _bite me_.”

“Oof,” Minseok sucked in a breath through clenched teeth. “Sehun, that is not the quality backtalk we’ve come to expect from you.”

Sehun slammed his hands into his hips. “Talk to me when you can win at bowling.”

“There it is!” Jongdae laughed. “Alright, alright. Let’s head. I’m hungry.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm literally posting this on my lunch break rip asdjglaksfhgiuaer;goijsdflkjasdgj thaNKS HOPE U ENJOY THE NEXT CHAP IS LIKE MY FAVOURITE


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“What happened?” Sehun frowned._
> 
> _Minseok snorted loudly. “Yixing was so drunk once that he saw an ant trying to carry a crumb across the table and he cried because it was working so hard.”_
> 
> _“That ant was a fucking inspiration,” Yixing grumbled, “You could all take a leaf from that ant’s book.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: M   
> Warnings for underage drinking

 

 

 

“FUCK, I’M SO HUNGRY,” Luhan roared, arms laden with takeaway containers, voice echoing around Jongdae’s entrance hall. “This shit smells _so_ good.”

“Go start then, we’ll get the drinks,” Jongdae rolled his eyes, and Luhan pelted up the stairs. “Sehun, coming?”

“For sure.”

Jongdae smiled at Sehun’s friends. “You guys go with Luhan and make yourselves comfortable. The party’s just getting started.”

“Hell yeah,” Chanyeol boomed, pulling Baekhyun with him up the stairs after Luhan. Sehun eyed them, but Baekhyun seemed to have calmed down, grinning to himself as he held onto Chanyeol’s waist, and Chanyeol was just as bubbly as he always was.

He shrugged to himself and followed Jongdae to the kitchen, letting out a dramatic sigh of relief when their host opened the fridge to reveal shelves packed with alcohol.

“Yes,” he said simply. “This is good.”

“You’re such an alcoholic,” Jongdae snorted, cocking his hip and placing a hand on it. “This isn’t free, though, you know.”

Sehun frowned. Jongdae was as philanthropic as any high school student could be. “No?”

“Not tonight.” Jongdae smirked, but it was more like a grin as he raised a finger to his lips. “You have to kiss me first.”

“I think that’s called prostitution.”

Jongdae stuck out his tongue. “Do you want to drink or not?”

Sehun snorted, taking Jongdae’s warm, tipsy face in both hands and kissing him square on the mouth. Jongdae sighed happily, hands on Sehun’s waist. He was so small — his jaw fit neatly right in Sehun’s hand. He smiled up at Sehun lazily when he finally pulled away, giving him a quick squeeze.

“You’re such a good kisser,” he sighed happily, wiggling his shoulders. “We should fuck sometime. Would you be down?”

“Uh,” Sehun blinked at the sudden question. “Sometime, maybe, yeah,” he agreed with a nod. After all, he wouldn’t be able to mess around with Baekhyun anymore. “Ask me again when you’re sober.”

“Fair enough.” Jongdae beamed with the light of a thousand suns and Sehun felt his heart flutter. He was _so_ pretty. “‘Ask me again when you’re sober’. You’re so cute, Sehun. So thoughtful. I can see why everyone likes you.” He turned to the fridge and pulled out a case of beer, handing it over to Sehun. “Take this.”

Sehun took it obediently, leaning in with wide eyes. “Do you like me?”

“Of course I like you.”

“Am I good looking?”

Jongdae grabbed a six pack of cider and one of premix in each hand and raised an eyebrow. “Are you fishing for compliments, Sehunnie?”

“I just like to know where I stand.”

“So, yes.”

“Okay, yes, I am. Be honest, though.”

“You’re incredibly good looking,” Jongdae admitted easily. “What an amazing body. I want to play with it. _Sometime, maybe_.”

Sehun laughed. “Speaking of which, though,” he shifted the box in his arms awkwardly. “That reminds me… um… Chanyeol and Tao don’t know I’ve been fucking Baekhyun, so…” he hesitated. Jongdae looked at him evenly. “If you could like, keep it quiet… I would appreciate it.”

“You’re a strange one, Oh Sehun,” Jongdae hummed. “But of course, whatever makes you comfortable.” He stretched up on tip-toes and kissed him again. “Let’s go eat.”

“Okay.” Sehun was hungry. And he really wanted to drink. “We’d better hurry before they scoff the whole lot.”

Jongdae laughed, marching out of the kitchen and trotting cutely up the stairs, kicking the rec room door against the wall. “We come bearing drinks!” he announced their entrance, and Luhan whooped through a mouthful of food, spilling noodle down his chin.

Sehun dumped the case down on the table, looking around for a place to sit. Tao looked equal parts terrified and delighted squashed between Kris and Chanyeol, Baekhyun half on Chanyeol’s lap, leaning against the arm of the sofa. Minseok and Luhan were sitting side by side, eating off the table, and Yixing was next to Jongin, waiting for Jongdae on the final couch, scrolling through his phone to find something to play over the Bluetooth speakers. Luhan patted the empty seat beside him. “Sehun, come sit here.”

Jongdae started handing out drinks, shaking a can of beer furiously before tossing it to Kris. “Here you go.”

“Jongdae what the fuck,” Kris whined, gingerly catching it and looking at it like a dead animal.

Jongdae grinned remorselessly, circling a finger in the direction of Sehun’s friends. “What y’all want?”

“Uh,” Chanyeol hesitated, looking helplessly between Sehun and Baekhyun. “What… should I have?”

“Oh, have you not drunk before?” Jongdae gasped. “Oh, god. Oh no. Oh you’re all so cute. Sehun, why are your friends so cute?”

Sehun snorted, cracking open a container of fried rice. “Please. These assholes are cute?”

“Of course, we’re the cutest people you know,” Chanyeol scoffed back, running a hand through his hair and getting his fingers caught in gel. “Ow. Seriously, I don’t know what to drink.”

Jongdae let out a small sob, placing a hand over his heart. “Here, try this,” he handed over a couple of bottles of the premixed vodka to Chanyeol and Tao, wiping away a fake tear. “Byun?”

“I want one of those, too.”

“Here you go.” Jongdae passed out beers to his remaining friends then settled down beside Yixing, opening his mouth to let himself be fed.

“Alright.” Luhan wiped his mouth and set down his utensils, pointing at Chanyeol. “You. Start talking.”

Chanyeol blinked. “Huh?”

Luhan clapped. “Come on, I speak to Tao sometimes, but I don’t think we’ve ever talked. Introduce yourself. We need to get to know you.”

“Okay,” Chanyeol spread his arms out. “Hello, I’m Happy Virus Chanyeol, I’m eighteen, and I’ve been friends with Sehun since middle school.”

“Happy virus?”

“Because my happiness is contagious,” Chanyeol explained, showing entirely too many teeth. “I don’t really know what else to say about myself. I’m tall. I play guitar. I used to think I was straight.”

Kris laughed, raising his drink. “We’ve all been there.”

“Hey, speak for yourself,” Jongdae snorted, winking at Baekhyun. Baekhyun raised his eyebrows and looked away, nestling deeper into Chanyeol’s side.

“Chanyeol and Tao are both the unofficial leaders of Yifan’s fan club,” Sehun noted innocently, rewarded by Tao’s mouth falling open in betrayal. Minseok burst out laughing with Yixing, and Kris turned to look at the people beside him in surprise.

“Actually?”

“Can you blame us?” Chanyeol admitted easily. “All of the straight girls in the entire school are swooning over you, did you think the queer guys wouldn’t also?”

“What about Sehun? Sehun used to have the hots for you too,” Tao pointed out accusingly.

“True,” Sehun nodded. “But after knowing you for a while…” he trailed off meaningfully, flicking his eyebrows and sipping his drink.

“Wow, rude,” Kris gasped, “You can’t possibly be trying to say I’m not attractive.”

“No, you’re attractive alright,” Sehun elaborated. “But I used to think you were super cool. And now that I’ve spent some time with you… you are definitely not cool.”

Luhan sounded like he was having trouble breathing from laughing so hard. Kris threw a pillow at his head. “Fuck off, Luhan, nobody asked you!”

“No,” Luhan huffed, wiping his eyes. “But Sehun thinks _I’m_ cool.”

“You wish,” Sehun punched him in the arm. “When did I ever say that? As if.”

Luhan shrugged off his denial. “You’ve said I was cool before. More than once, in fact. Score one for Luhan, Yifan nil.”

“Hey, Jongdae,” Minseok put down his takeaway container and turned to the other couch. “You got soju?”

Jongdae raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, why?”

Minseok grinned. “Because we have new additions to the group, you know what that means.”

Chanyeol sat up. “What? What does that mean?”

“Oh hell YES,” Luhan yelled, punching the air. “Time for shots, bitch! Never have I ever!”

“Uh, what,” Jongin deadpanned, “Are we girls? The fuck.”

Sehun leaned his elbow on the arm of the sofa and his head on his hand. “You’re at an exclusively homo house party, dude. What did you expect.”

“Jongdae go get the fucking soju, Jongin is going _down_.”

“On it,” Jongdae agreed readily, heaving himself off the couch. “Welcome to your own demise, Luhan.”

“Have you forgotten last time already?” Luhan called after him, then turned back to the table, resting his arm on Sehun’s shoulder. “I’m so excited. Sehun, you gotta help us find out all your friends’ dirty little secrets.”

“Yikes,” Jongin snorted.

Tao pointed at Sehun. “Don’t forget I can end you.”

Sehun stuck out his tongue. “Even if I hide behind a spider?”

“That is a _low blow_.”

Sehun blew a kiss across the room. “Love you.”

“You’re ugly.”

Sehun sneered sarcastically and Tao mimicked his expression right back, curling defensively against Chanyeol.

“Alright, ladies, here we go,” Jongdae called out, soju bottles hanging by the necks through the spaces between the fingers of his right hand, a bag of plastic shot glasses in his left.

“Bunch up, darlings,” Luhan cheered, falling to his knees beside the coffee table. “Time to get Jongdae fucked _up_.”

“Says the confirmed sluttiest drunk.”

“That’s not me. That’s Sehun.”

“Oh, please,” Sehun pushed out his lips. “You know I only ever have eyes for you, Luhan.”

“ _Ouch_ ,” Jongdae gasped, laying a hand over his heart as he arranged a spread of shot glasses on the table.

“I agree, _ouch_ ,” Jongin added. “Nice to know you can throw me aside so easily, Sehun.”

Sehun raised his eyebrows. “Oh, so _now_ you want me?”

“No, no.” Jongin held up his hands in surrender. “You’re all Luhan’s. I’ll give you up with grace.”

“How kind,” Luhan stated dryly.

“I like Jongin already,” Jongdae chirped happily. “He appreciates that our friendship is all just a guise for a Roast Luhan squad.”

“Let’s fucking start,” Luhan whined, reaching out to help Jongdae pour the shots. “No holds barred. This is war.”

“Bring it on,” Jongdae scoffed.

“Alright, I nominate this lot to go first,” Minseok gestured at Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Tao. “Let’s find out how innocent you really are.”

Baekhyun shrugged, falling down onto the floor to kneel by the table, closely followed by Chanyeol. “I guess I have no pride to lose. Are we doing fingers, or just taking shots until someone pukes?”

Yixing laughed. “Pukes? Come on, Baekhyun. Vomiting just means your stomach is preparing for more alcohol.”

Baekhyun raised an eyebrow, then tapped a finger on his lips. “Okay, never have I ever drunk so much I passed out.”

“Boring,” Luhan announced, throwing back his first shot with Jongdae, Yixing, Minseok, Jongin and Kris. “Chanyeol, you’re up!”

“Uh,” Chanyeol hummed for a second. “Never have I ever had alcohol before today?”

“Double boring!” Luhan groaned, as everyone except Tao took another shot. “Come on, Tao. Step up the game.”

“Excuse you, I’m very innocent,” Tao sniffed. “Never have I ever broken a bone.”

“Oh, that… actually, I don’t think I have done that,” Luhan frowned, looking around the circle. “Jongin, what did you break?”

“I broke my arm once,” Jongin shrugged. “Sucked balls. I had dicks on my cast for a month.”

“Foreshadowing,” Sehun snorted, and Jongin stuck out his tongue.

“Come on, Yifan,” Luhan flapped a hand. “Give us the good shit.”

Kris snorted. “Never have I ever fucked two guys at once.”

“This is bullying,” Jongdae yelled, sulkily taking his shot amidst raucous laughter, suddenly shaking an excited finger at Baekhyun, who was trying to drink as subtly as possible. “BYUN BAEKHYUN! MY BRO!”

“No way,” Sehun crowed, mouth stretching in a shocked cackle. “Fuck, you never told me that!”

“And I never will,” Baekhyun stated solidly, “That story is safe with me.”

“Boo,” Jongdae pouted. “Anyway, Jongin. Backstory time!”

Jongin hummed. “Never have I ever… been arrested?”

Nobody moved. Jongin pouted. “Really? Nobody?”

“How close, exactly, were you to being arrested?” Minseok asked curiously, sipping from his proper drink.

“That…” Jongin raised a finger, then ran his hand awkwardly through his hair. “…Is classified.”

Yixing laughed. “Let him have a bit more to drink, Minseok, we’ll get it out of him eventually.”

“You can try,” Jongin punched him in the arm. “What have you never done then?”

“I have never…” Yixing began amidst protests from Luhan.

“Yixing, respect the sanctity of the game! It’s _never have I ever_ , you ridiculous nerd.”

“Damn, chill,” Yixing widened his eyes. “Never have I _ever_ sucked a dick.”

“Well that’s just selfish,” Baekhyun commented, taking a shot with Luhan, Jongdae and Sehun.

Tao covered his eyes, shrieking dramatically. “Oh, god, Sehun, no!” he wailed. “Mental images I did not need! _I did not need!_ ”

“It was my dick, if that helps,” Baekhyun piped up innocently, and Tao screamed again, leaning over Chanyeol to whack him repeatedly on the arm.

“ _No, no, no,_ ” he moaned as Chanyeol firmly grasped his wrist and removed it protectively from Baekhyun. “Oh god, my brain. Where’s the bleach?”

“As if you’ve never fantasized about me before,” Sehun scoffed.

Tao scrunched up his entire face. “I’m going to be sick.”

“Please don’t be sick on my carpet,” Jongdae requested mildly. “Is it my turn?”

“If there’s anything you haven’t done,” Luhan snorted.

Jongdae flipped him off. “Never have I ever thrown up on someone’s cock.”

Minseok laughed, patting Luhan sympathetically on the back as he refilled his shot glass, glaring daggers at Jongdae. “You walked right into that one.”

“Fuck off,” Luhan cringed through the aftertaste of the shot. “Sehun, off you go. Nothing we heard last time, please.”

Sehun looked around at the circle, searching for someone to pick on. “This venture is to get to know Chanyeol and Tao better, right?”

“Oh, shit,” Chanyeol breathed.

Sehun grinned. “Never have I ever had a friend fuck my sister.”

“Low! Blow!” Jongin yelled, and Chanyeol closed his eyes, pretending to pass out on the floor before collecting himself and taking his shot.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Jongdae sat up, flinging his arms out to the side. “Whoa, wait a hot second. What?”

“It’s not that deep,” Jongin protested quickly. “I just. Once. Unknowingly! Might have lost my virginity to Chanyeol’s sister.”

Minseok, Kris and Yixing sucked in simultaneous breaths through their teeth.

“Damn,” Luhan snickered. “The more you know.”

“Can we move on?” Chanyeol pleaded, patting his cheeks. “Ugh, it doesn’t bear thinking about.”

“Yeah, go on, Luhan.” Sehun grinned. “And nothing I heard last time, please.”

“No, no,” Luhan protested. “Sehun, I think I might scar your friends if I go for Jongdae above and beyond where we went last time. Let’s start them off easy.”

Sehun briefly thought back to the Roast Of Jongdae. “Okay, fair enough,” he conceded. “The night is still young.”

“Never have I ever filmed myself having sex,” Luhan stuck out his tongue.

“I have no regrets,” Jongdae announced breezily, daintily sipping his shot. Chanyeol whistled lowly. “Anyway, it’s only because you don’t look as good on camera as I do."

“Oh, wait, you two like Yifan, right?” Luhan pointed at Sehun’s friends, deliberately ignoring Jongdae’s comment. “Minseok, you gotta stick into Yifan.”

Minseok chewed the inside of his cheek. “Never have I ever fallen over my own feet.”

“REST IN PEACE YIFAN,” Luhan cheered, happily drinking.

“That was tame as fuck, Minseok,” Jongdae chided, passing a shot to Yixing. Everyone else followed suit. Sehun could feel the three shots beginning to warm his face.

“The night is still young,” Minseok winked at Sehun. Jongdae groaned.

Baekhyun tilted his head to the side, thinking up a new attack. Chanyeol ruffled his hair fondly. Baekhyun turned to him. “Chanyeol, has Tao even had one shot? Help me out here.”

“That’s cheating,” Kris complained.

“Okay, geez.” Baekhyun held up a hand. “Um… never have I ever… don’t judge me, okay, I just want Tao to drink. Never have I ever been a part of a friend group.”

“Oh, god,” Yixing placed a hand on his heart. “Byun Baekhyun getting to the real shit already.”

Everyone but Sehun shifted awkwardly as they took their shots. “That’s so sad,” Chanyeol pouted, pulling Baekhyun tighter to his side. “Well, you’re part of this one now, right?” he shot a protective glower around at the circle.

“Of course you are,” Jongdae said immediately, ignoring Minseok and Luhan’s guilty expressions. “Come on, happy virus. You’re up, earn your name.”

Chanyeol chuckled, pulling Baekhyun into his lap. Baekhyun easily let him, smiling shyly across at Sehun. Sehun smiled back, washing down the shot with cider. He was definitely not waking up before midday tomorrow.

“Alright. Never have I ever…” he glanced over at Tao. “Cried at the sight of a bug.”

“You’re a bitch.” Tao sent Chanyeol his best pissed-off face, reluctantly pouring himself a shot.

Luhan cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Unicorn, why the fuck are you not drinking.”

“Oh my _god_ ,” Jongdae gasped suddenly. “I forgot about that.”

“What happened?” Sehun frowned.

Minseok snorted loudly. “Yixing was so drunk once that he saw an ant trying to carry a crumb across the table and he cried because it was working so hard.”

“That ant was a fucking inspiration,” Yixing grumbled, “You could all take a leaf from that ant’s book.”

“Yikes,” Chanyeol put a hand to his face. “Yixing is so pure it actually hurts my heart.”

“Tell me about it,” Jongdae smiled, nuzzling into Yixing’s face.

“Oh, that is cute as hell,” Tao gushed, grabbing instinctively at Kris’ arm. Kris looked down at him in surprise, but reached his free hand over his body to pat his head. Tao let out a small, high-pitched noise as he watched Jongdae gently press their noses together.

“This PDA is revolting.”

“Don’t be jealous, Luhan.” Jongdae hummed gently. “Shall we keep playing?”

“Please.”

“Never have I ever…” Tao began, tearing his eyes away from Jongdae and Yixing, “Um, never have I ever been in a real fight.”

“What’s a real fight?” Minseok frowned.

“Well, I do wushu, so I’ve been in choreographed fights for showcases,” Tao explained. “But I’ve never fought someone for real.”

“Ah.” Minseok sighed. “Okay, everybody, drink up.”

Everyone dutifully obeyed, and Jongin raised his eyebrows at Yixing. “You? Really?”

“You don’t know me. You don’t know my story,” Yixing swung his head around sassily. “I could take you.”

“Whatever you say,” Jongin blinked. “Kris?”

“Never have I ever kissed Sehun,” Kris said immediately, leaning back on the couch.

“Oh, fucking…” Jongin grumbled while Sehun groaned and threw his head back dramatically.

“Does the head count?” Tao asked, hand hovering over the shot glasses. “Or just the lips?”

Kris thought for a moment. “Lips only,” he decided. “This game is about exposing people, after all.”

“This is so rude,” Sehun complained, wrinkling his nose at Jongdae, Jongin, Luhan and Baekhyun reaching for drinks.

“Wow, Sehun is getting it,” Chanyeol snickered, wiggling his eyebrows. Sehun rolled his eyes and raised his middle finger lazily.

Jongin downed his seventh shot and shuddered. “Holy shit, I am going to feel this very soon. Alright. Never have I ever _fucked_ Sehun.”

“RUDE,” Sehun bellowed, sitting bolt upright.

“I feel personally attacked,” Baekhyun whined, “What the fuck happened? I thought we were picking on Jongdae.”

“Hey, if you can’t handle the heat…” Jongin pulled his foot up onto the sofa and smirked. “…don’t fuck Sehun.”

“Wow,” Sehun choked, “Anyway, this is not news. Come on, Yixing. Something we don’t all know.”

“No, no.” Yixing patted Jongdae’s head. “Jongdae has just had _nine_ shots. We are taking a break.”

“What the fuck,” Luhan said flatly. “Yixing, what are you doing?”

“It’s called responsibility,” Yixing shot back. “A foreign concept to you, I know.”

“I resent that.”

Sehun snickered, placing his hand on Luhan’s head. The soju was settling into his stomach and he couldn’t really focus on anything. Luhan smiled up at him prettily, and Sehun felt his face heat up. His pale skin was cursed with Asian flush. That was definitely the only reason.

“I love you,” Jongdae mumbled up at Yixing.

“I know you do, honey,” Yixing replied softly, pulling Jongdae’s legs onto his lap.

Kris sighed, head lolling back against the back of the couch. “I’m feeling it,” he admitted, bringing his arm up to rest behind Tao’s shoulders. Tao looked like he might actually faint.

Sehun laughed to himself, the world shaking in front of his eyes. “Me too.”

“Yep,” Jongin groaned, waving his hands in front of his face. “Damn, this stuff is strong.”

“You’re all lightweights,” Minseok snorted.

“You know, I don’t think you’re that good,” Yixing argued. “I think you just fake…” he thought for a moment, resorting to Mandarin, “ _Sobriety_ really well.”

Minseok stuck out his tongue. “ _At least I remember how to speak my second language_.”

“Don’t be mean,” Jongdae chastised, eyes closed, rubbing his face against Yixing’s shirt.

Jongin gazed at the interaction through hazy eyes. “Is this Chinese business going to be a thing?”

“Yep.” Minseok answered immediately. “Drunk Yixing doesn’t do Korean well.”

“Oh, hell yes,” Tao pointed at Sehun and Chanyeol. “Your turn to suffer, assholes.”

“Everything is suffering when we’re with Luhan,” Sehun pointed out

Luhan kissed him defiantly. “You love it.”

Sehun smiled.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short-ish one   
> I will update again tomorrow n_n


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Aw,” Sehun cooed, “You guys are the cutest.”_
> 
> _“Excuse,” Chanyeol pouted, pulling Baekhyun’s hand to his heart._
> 
> _Sehun rolled his eyes. “Please. You wish you could be as cute as Jongdae and Yixing.”_
> 
> _“Don’t we all,” Luhan sighed wistfully, “They’re the true OTP.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-15  
> Warnings for underage drinking

 

 

 

Baekhyun raised his hands above his head. “Hey, hey, hey, OHHHHHH,” he screamed, hitting the high note with precision

“STOP! WAIT A MINUTE!” Kris yelled in response.

“FILL MY CUP, PUT SOME LIQUOR IN IT,” Chanyeol added. His dancing was terrible, but it fit right in with the vibe the three of them were emanating in the empty area behind the couches.

Tao was watching with delighted fascination, now leaning against Sehun, nursing a bottle of premix.

“I’M TOO HOT,” Kris pointed right at him.

“HOT DAMN,” Tao cried back, raising his drink. Kris went back to dancing with Chanyeol, and Sehun snorted loudly, rubbing his face on Tao’s hair. He was incredibly drunk. Jongin was watching Yixing attentively while Yixing rambled at him earnestly in Mandarin. Minseok was jamming out on the couch, looking ready to go join the Dorky Three at any moment. Jongdae and Luhan were muttering lowly in the corner of the room, finishing off the cold leftovers from dinner.

Sehun hummed against Tao’s scalp, breathing in the smell of his hair. It smelled like home, like love. Like acceptance. Like support. Like fun.

“I love you,” he mumbled.

“I love you too, you nerd,” Tao said back sincerely, tipping his head back to look at him. “You’re my best friend, you know that, right?”

“Yeah,” Sehun wrapped his arms around his shoulders. “You are so important, Tao. Don’t let anybody tell you otherwise.”

“And you!” Tao gasped, grasping Sehun’s wrists. “So, so important, Sehun.”

“Hey!” Chanyeol protested, appearing suddenly against the back of the couch. “Are you two having a moment without me?”

“I love you too, Chanyeol,” Sehun freed one of his arms to circle his finger around the three of them. “This? This. This is important. We can never break up. Okay?”

“Of course not! Membership for life, remember!” Chanyeol nodded furiously, then had to take a moment to regain his balance.

“Girls hit your hallelujah!” Baekhyun screeched.

“HOO!” Jongdae warbled from across the room.

Sehun laughed, kissing Chanyeol on the cheek. “You guys are the best.”

“Hell yeah, you know it.” Chanyeol pulled on Tao’s arm. “Come dance with us.”

“I’m up,” Tao agreed, and Sehun pushed on his back to help him stand. He looked around as Tao wandered over to the dancing group, and saw Luhan and Jongdae had also stood, dancing very, very close together. They were both smiling widely, pretty lips to pretty lips when Jongdae took Luhan’s face into his hands.

It was far from the first time Sehun had seen them kiss, but through the alcohol haze, it was all he could focus on. He pulled a couch cushion over his lap to hide his boner, unable to look away. Luhan pulled away first, grinning into Jongdae’s face, then glanced over and locked eyes.

Sehun snapped his mouth shut, feeling heat creep up his face. He saw Luhan laugh before he heard it, then Luhan was grabbing Jongdae by the hand and pulling him over to Sehun’s sofa

“Hello,” he chirped happily, falling onto Sehun’s chest. Jongdae flopped down beside them, dragging Sehun’s arm over his shoulder and swinging his legs into his lap. Luhan giggled. “What are you so pink for, Sehunnie?”

“I. Uh.” He broke off with a yelp when Jongdae grabbed his thigh, snickering cheekily into his neck.

“You are so fucking cute.” Luhan kissed his cheek sloppily. “Oh, my god.”

“Jongdae,” Sehun whined, shaking his leg to try to get Jongdae’s hand off. It backfired spectacularly as Jongdae squeezed, sliding a little further up.

“What’s this pillow here for?” Jongdae teased, and Luhan gasped.

“Sehun!” he squealed with faux shock, looking entirely too smug.

“Shut up,” Sehun moaned.

“It’s okay,” Luhan cackled. “I know the two of us are overwhelmingly sexy.”

“You know what would be sexier,” Jongdae drawled.

“What’s that?” Luhan asked innocently.

“The three of us,” Jongdae answered softly.

Luhan gasped again. “Chen, you’re filthy.”

“Oh my god.” Sehun pulled Jongdae’s hand away. “You guys are so drunk.”

“He has a point,” Jongdae admitted, bringing his arms to wrap much more appropriately around Sehun’s ribs, leaning his cheek against his shoulder. “Too drunk to do anything right now. Consent and all that.”

“Maybe next time,” Luhan agreed, snuggling up on Sehun’s other side. Sehun closed his eyes, leaning his head on Luhan’s. They were warm. He was sleepy. And so comfortable.

“What are you hornballs doing,” Minseok asked flatly.

Luhan laughed, breath dancing across Sehun’s collarbone. Sehun shivered. “You want in on the pile, Minseok?”

“I’m good.” Minseok declined, but smiled. “Sehun, they’re not harassing you, right?”

“Nah, it’s cool,” Sehun mumbled, rubbing Jongdae’s shoulder. “Like a human blanket.”

“Okay then.” Minseok stood up and stretched, “You guys are cute.”

“You know it,” Jongdae threw up a peace sign.

Fantastic Baby came up on shuffle and Sehun opened his eyes again, tipping his head to the other side to watch his friends spring into action, dramatically screaming the lyrics.

“I want a smoke,” Luhan mumbled softly.

“Go smoke, then,” Jongdae suggested.

“But Sehun is so comfortable.”

“Take him with you.”

“Nice to know I have a say in this decision.”

“Shhh, mattresses don’t speak.”

“Good thing I’m not a mattress, then.”

Luhan pouted, pushing his face up into Sehun’s neck.

“Hey,” Sehun batted him away. “No hickeys. Bad Luhan.”

“Oh,” Luhan pouted deeper.

Sehun cleared his throat and shrugged, looking around. “What time is it?”

Jongdae groaned as he reached for his phone and struggled for a good few seconds to focus on the screen. “Half past one. Why?”

Sehun sighed. “I was going to check on Kyungsoo, but I think it’s too late. Hopefully he’s asleep now.”

Luhan was quiet for a moment, then reached for Sehun’s hand. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Wasn’t me.”

“Still.”

“I’m really okay. Just worried about Kyungsoo. He hasn’t had too many run-ins with them. It was probably a bit of a shock to him.”

Jongdae rolled his head to look up. “Hey, Sehun?”

“Yeah?”

“Is Kyungsoo gay too?”

Sehun hesitated. “I don’t know,” he admitted quietly. “He doesn’t talk about his sexuality much. He doesn’t really get interested in people that way. He’s invested in our love lives, and Chanyeol and Tao used to tease him about me, but…” he shrugged. “Relationships aren’t a priority for him. Why do you ask?”

“Just curious.” Jongdae rolled his head back to Sehun’s chest. “He doesn’t really have that vibe, you know. But he doesn't have the straight vibe either.”

“Hm.”

“Okay, I’m actually going,” Luhan announced, reluctantly pulling away from the hug. “Chen, you coming?”

“Yeah, alright.” Jongdae agreed. “Sehun, you want to continue this outside? Or you gonna stay here?”

“I’ll come.” Sehun was reluctant to give up the skinship. He looked over to where Jongin was still pretending to listen to Yixing’s story. “Hey, Jongin.”

Yixing shut up as they turned.

“You still smoke?”

“Uh,” Jongin said warily. “On occasion.”

“Occasion like now?” Luhan asked. “We’re going outside, if you want to join.”

“Oh! That’s all. Yeah, alright.”

“ _Why are you taking away my audience,_ ” Yixing whined, and Jongdae laughed as he staggered drunkenly over to his boyfriend.

“ _Sorry, love._ ” He apologized, kissing his nose. “ _We’ll bring him back soon. You rest here, okay?_ ”

“ _Okay_.” Yixing let Jongdae lie him down and arrange the pillows beneath his head. Jongdae pushed his hair back and pressed his lips to his forehead so gently, stroking his face once before straightening and turning to the others.

“Shall we?”

“After you.”

 

*

 

Tao collapsed onto the couch when the song ended, head spinning. His mind was a mess, soju throwing his thoughts into a horrendous jumble. It took him a moment to realize something was wrong.

“ _Where’s Sehun_?” he asked Yixing, relieved he didn’t have to put effort into remembering Korean grammar and vocabulary.

Yixing snorted. “ _On the roof with his hoes, of course_.”

“ _The roof_?”

“ _They’re smoking._ ”

“ _Sehun smokes?_ ”

“ _No, but he always sits with us while we do,_ ” Yixing elaborated. “ _He loves the attention. And Jongdae loves giving it to him. Poor Luhan._ ”

Tao frowned. Was he just drunk, or did that not make sense? “ _Luhan?_ ”

Yixing froze, face twisting as he struggled to think straight. “ _Whoops, you can’t ask me that. I’m not supposed to talk about Luhan being in love with Sehun._ ”

“ _Luhan WHAT_?” Tao yelped.

“ _Uh,_ ” Yixing rolled onto his side, falling off the couch in an attempt to sit upright. “ _No, we can’t talk about Luhan in Korean. Only in Mandarin. But we’re talking Mandarin now?_ ”

Tao stared at him, brain struggling to catch up with his instincts. Holy shit. Everything made so much more sense now. He would have to definitely reflect on this when he sobered up.

“ _I have made a mistake,_ ” Yixing was realizing out loud to the carpet.

“ _It’s okay_.” Tao reached down to help him back up. “ _I won’t tell Luhan you told me_.”

Well. He wouldn’t tell Luhan. He gave Yixing a single pat on the shoulder and whipped around, gripping the arm of the sofa. “CHANYEOL!”

 

*

 

By 2am, everyone except Sehun knew. After a few failed, drunken attempts by Kris and Yixing to shush Tao, Minseok had finally sat him, Baekhyun and Chanyeol down and firmly told them that they were not to say a _word_.

It hadn’t been too difficult. He’d told them that Luhan had a confession all planned out, to which sparkly romantic hearts had exploded in Chanyeol’s eyes and he’d sworn on everyone’s behalf to keep it quiet.

“With that being said,” Tao said, drinking some water in an attempt to process the situation, “What exactly are Luhan’s intentions with Sehun?”

Minseok blinked. “Huh?”

“Like,” Tao could tell that he was speaking really slowly, but his brain was really struggling tonight. “Is he going to take care of him properly? Or?”

Minseok tilted his head to the side in confusion. “You _know_ Luhan,” he pointed out.

“I know, I know Luhan,” Tao agreed testily, “But not like… this is new information.”

“Of course he’ll take care of Sehun.”

“That’s if Sehun says yes,” Baekhyun pointed out, sitting on the floor with his knees wrapped in his arms and leaning against the side of the couch, jumping slightly when Chanyeol whipped around to stare at him.

“Of course he’ll say yes! They like, _belong_ together,” he gasped, grabbing his own face. “Can’t you imagine it? They’ll be like the power couple of the century.”

Baekhyun wrinkled his nose. “I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you.”

“Hey,” Kris protested. “Just because _you_ don’t want Sehun going out with anyone…”

Baekhyun’s lip curled, but he said nothing, taking Chanyeol’s hand defensively.

“How long has this been going on, anyway?” Tao asked.

“Since the beginni—” Minseok began, but he was interrupted by the crash of the door against the wall.

“We’re back,” Jongin announced, marching in with Jongdae on his back, followed closely by Sehun, carrying Luhan. Tao’s mouth fell open and he grabbed Kris’ arm, sucking in a faintly squeal-like breath. Kris put a hand on his head in warning.

“Well you’re all looking adorably affectionate,” Sehun noted, raising an eyebrow, turning around to dump Luhan backwards onto a sofa.

“Mm-hmm,” Tao choked with a nod, not trusting himself to speak.

Yixing stood up and plucked Jongdae off Jongin’s back, holding him bridal style as Jongdae nuzzled happily into his throat.

“Aw,” Sehun cooed, inserting himself under Luhan’s head. “You guys are the cutest.”

“Excuse,” Chanyeol pouted, pulling Baekhyun’s hand to his heart.

Sehun rolled his eyes. “Please. You wish you could be as cute as Jongdae and Yixing.”

“Don’t we all,” Luhan sighed wistfully, “They’re the true OTP.”

“It’s true.” Yixing grinned, adjusting Jongdae in his grip and stumbling slightly. A flash of terror crossed Jongdae’s face and he clung on for dear life. “I’m going to put this one to bed. I think he’s had enough to drink. You all have fun now.”

“Your face has had enough to drink,” Jongdae pouted.

“You don’t want to go to bed with me?”

Jongdae thought for a second. “Okay, put me to bed,” he agreed. “You guys know where the blankets are,” he said to Kris and Minseok over Yixing’s shoulder as he was carried out. “Don’t stay up too late.”

“Not to worry,” Luhan mumbled, hugging Sehun’s thigh.

“Aw, already?” Jongin laughed, settling down on an empty sofa.

“Yeah, I’m not tired either,” Kris agreed, waving a hand at Jongin. “Poker?”

“I’m down,” Minseok interjected, and Kris held up his hand for a high five.

“I’m literally down,” Luhan snickered, closing his eyes. “You have fun.”

“Same.” Sehun squirmed his way into a lying position, wrapping his arms around Luhan’s waist from behind. Tao let out a small sob-like noise. “Night.”

“Night, Sehun.” Chanyeol wiggled his eyebrows, but only Baekhyun noticed.

 

*

 

“Are you awake?”

Chanyeol hummed without opening his eyes, and Baekhyun looked around to check that nobody else was conscious. Sehun and Luhan were lying in a ridiculously intimate tangle of limbs, Kris had passed out sitting up with Minseok and Tao leaning against him, and Jongin was under the table, snoring quietly. “Chanyeol,” he whispered again, giving his shoulder a light shake.

Chanyeol cracked his eyes open, blinking a couple of times. “What’s the matter?”

“Come with me.”

“Where?”

“Out.”

“Baekhyun…”

“Please?”

Chanyeol groaned, stretching his neck and wincing at the crack. “Okay.”

Baekhyun pulled him off the couch and tiptoed out of the room, double checking to make sure nobody saw them. He closed the door as quietly as he could, leaning against the wall of the landing. Chanyeol rubbed his eyes, yawning widely. His stature made his sleepiness extra adorable, and Baekhyun felt his heart melt. The hall was silent except for the faint hum of the air conditioning.

“What’s wrong, Baek?” Chanyeol asked, gazing at him blearily.

“I need to tell you something.”

“It can’t wait until tomorrow?”

Baekhyun shook his head. His mind was racing at a million miles an hour. He’d lose his nerve if he had to wait. “Are you still drunk?”

Chanyeol shook his head as well, sinking to the floor. Baekhyun sat down next to him, pulling his knees to his chest. Chanyeol cleared his throat. “Talk to me.”

Baekhyun sighed, wiggling his toes and watching them through his socks. “Do you remember when I slept with Sehun?”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol acknowledged softly.

“How did you feel about that?”

“Why?”

“I’d like to know.”

Chanyeol ran a hand through his hair, tilting his head to the side. “Why did you do it?”

“I wanted to see if I could.”

“Were you lonely?”

“No,” Baekhyun admitted. “Not more than usual. He was just… so shy, and innocent. I wanted to mess with him.”

Chanyeol hummed, his face uncharacteristically solemn. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you didn’t know.”

“Why do I need to know?”

Baekhyun turned to look at him, eyeing the faint flicker of hope in Chanyeol’s tired eyes.

“Because I don’t think you should like me as much as you do.”

Chanyeol shook his head and shrugged. “There’s nothing I can do about that.”

“You could give up on me.”

“No, I couldn’t.”

Baekhyun bit his lip. “I’ve been fucking Sehun for months.”

Surprise flashed across Chanyeol’s face. “Really?”

“Every week.”

“Oh.” Chanyeol nodded slowly. “I didn’t know that.” He thought about it for a moment. “Do you like him?”

“What do you mean by ‘like’ him?”

“You know what I mean.”

“He’s excellent in bed.”

“But you don’t like him.”

“No.”

“Okay.” Chanyeol frowned slightly, rubbing his eyes. “Where were we going with this?”

Baekhyun sighed. “I’m trying to warn you about me. All of your friends are already wary of me. I’m worried you’re in denial.”

“Why does that bother you?”

“What do you mean?”

Chanyeol hummed, scratching his head behind his ear. “So what if I trust you more than they do? Are you worried that I’ll suddenly stop liking you at some point?”

Baekhyun started rocking slightly, planting his chin on his knees. “Aren’t you worried I’d leave you?”

“Isn’t everyone?”

“Chanyeol, come on.”

“I’m serious. Nobody ever enters a relationship without the risk of being dumped. You’re a good person, Baekhyun—”

“I’m not.”

“I think you are.”

“I think you could do better.”

“But I want _you_.”

Baekhyun could feel his heart pounding in his chest at Chanyeol’s soft confession. Not that he didn’t know, of course, but it was the first time he’d said so in so many words. He lowered his head, hiding in his knees.

“I don’t care who you’ve slept with, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol murmured, “I don’t— I really— hold on.” He scrubbed furiously at his face, frantically kneading his cheeks. “I’m so tired right now let me just, uh, find words. Okay. What was I saying? Oh yeah. I don’t care,” he turned to Baekhyun with wide eyes, still clutching his face. “I don’t care who you’ve slept with, or how many people you’ve slept with, or anything like that. I’m not looking for someone to own, I’m looking for someone to date. Um,” he lowered his hands and hugged his legs, “You talk a lot, you know. I think you’ve told me more stuff than you realize you have.”

Baekhyun bit his lip, glancing over nervously before returning to the safety of his knees. “What… what do you mean?”

“Well…” Chanyeol wiggled his feet, doing a little dance in the rotation of his ankles. “I mean, you imply a lot of things. That you first had sex way too young. That you’re scared of your parents. That you hated your old school. That you miss your brother. That you pretend to not need people.” He paused for a second to yawn, keeping his eyes on his toes. “But I like listening to you. I like how nice it is to sit with you and have lunch with you and study with you, I like how my heart does things when you laugh, I like how you light up and babble when you’re talking about something that makes you happy, I like how you take something as dumb and boring as math and make it sound so cool, even if I don’t understand it, and you don’t make me feel like an idiot, and you… you act like you’re _all that_ but sometimes you get really shy, like when you sing, or when you talk about something you’re proud of, and it’s so cute, Baek, I can’t…” he took a breath and let it out as a sigh. “You’re so cute, Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun swallowed hard, feeling the blood creep up his face. His chest ached and his fingers were tingling, unable to believe what he was hearing. He couldn’t think of a single thing to say in response, caught between bursting into tears and flat out laughing at Chanyeol for being stupid enough to think he was lovable. He was a mess, a wreck, petty and manipulative and unfaithful and—

Chanyeol’s hand landed on the back of his neck and he shivered, warmth seeping through his whole body.

—and he was a selfish fuckface who _wanted this with his whole soul._

“Let me try, at least,” Chanyeol requested quietly. “I really like you, Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun kept his head down but reached out to place his hand on Chanyeol’s knee. Chanyeol shifted closer, pressing his leg alongside Baekhyun’s thigh. A good third of the length jutted past Baekhyun’s knees. “Baekhyun,” he whispered, “Will you go out with me?”

Baekhyun nodded, fingers tightening around Chanyeol’s kneecap. He looked up to see the smile on Chanyeol’s face, leaned into his body heat. “Yeah.”

Chanyeol let out a huff of laughter, carefully touching his face. “Can I kiss you?”

“Yes,” Baekhyun whispered, closing his eyes as Chanyeol leaned in. His kiss was soft and gentle and chaste, but Baekhyun’s heart was still racing in his chest. He’d never had a kiss like this — there was no tongue, no arousal, no desperation, no hunger, no promise of sex; it was just affection and happiness and comfort. He couldn’t believe he’d _asked_. He didn’t deserve this kind of love.

Chanyeol withdrew eventually, chuckling to himself and pulling Baekhyun tight to his chest. “I’ll be good to you,” Baekhyun promised dazedly, hugging back.

“Just having you with me is enough,” Chanyeol assured him, rubbing his back. “As long as you’re happy with me.”

“I am,” Baekhyun whispered. “I don’t want to fuck this up.”

“You worry too much.”

“I’ve never been this scared to lose something before.”

“Hey, come on,” Chanyeol laughed softly. “We’ve only just started. I’m not going anywhere.”

Baekhyun squeezed his ribs, breathing in the smell of his shirt and listening to the quick thudding of his heart. “Okay.”

“Ah,” Chanyeol sighed happily. “Can we go to sleep now?”

“Yeah.” Baekhyun pulled away reluctantly and stood up, reaching a hand down to help Chanyeol to his feet.

They kissed again, and Baekhyun felt very small, very vulnerable. He said nothing; just smiled at Chanyeol before turning to go back into the room with the others.

Chanyeol fist pumped the air behind his back, stomping excitedly on the spot and momentarily losing control of his grin. He’d _done it_.

And Baekhyun had said yes.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“There’s pretty tough competition, isn’t there,” Sehun said quietly._
> 
> _“Sehun, relax. We’re fucking good. And we have an amazing routine. We’ll be fine.”_
> 
> _“Yeah,” Luhan agreed. “Sehun, you’re only realizing the stakes now, but Jongin, Yixing and I have known about this contest for ages. You know that confidence we had before? That was based on our experience. Trust us, we have a good shot.”_
> 
> __

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: G

 

 

 

The day of the dance contest was upon them. Sehun packed his outfit into his gym back, anxiety settling smugly in his stomach. He really had no reason to be nervous — he had practiced hard, he knew the dance backwards and forwards and in his sleep, but his body seemed determined to make him uncomfortable.

His phone lit up on the bed beside his bag and he picked it up, reading the message from the popup.

_Luhan already here. Waitin for u. gonna be long?_

_Just leaving now. Be there in 15_.

He shoved his phone unceremoniously into his jeans pocket and hitched the bag onto his shoulder, calling out a farewell to his mother before leaving the house. She responded with a faint “Good luck, have fun,” as the door swung shut behind him.

It helped a little.

He walked alone from the train station to Jongin’s house. There was a nice car parked out the front that he hadn’t seen before, and he could see Luhan in the back seat, flipping through a magazine. He knocked on the window, jumping quickly backwards as Luhan leaned over and swung the door open.

“Fucking finally,” he said good-naturedly, beaming at him with his bag on his lap.

“Come on, nerd, we’re going to be late,” Jongin added from the passenger seat.

“Uh, sorry,” Sehun apologized quickly, sliding in beside Luhan.

“Jongin, you’re so mean to your friends,” a girl said from behind the wheel. “Hi, you must be Sehun.”

“Yeah, that’s me. Nice to meet you,” Sehun greeted her awkwardly.

She stared at Jongin expectantly, widening her eyes when he continued to play on his phone. “Well? Aren’t you going to introduce me?”

Jongin rolled his eyes. “Sehun, this is my sister, Jungah.”

“Yikes,” Jungah hissed, shifting gears into reverse and pulling out of the driveway. “Sehun, please teach my brother some manners.”

“Sehun’s younger than me.”

“Luhan, please teach my brother some manners.”

“On it.” Luhan rolled up the magazine and smacked it across the back of Jongin’s head. “Jongin, be fucking polite to your sister.”

Jungah laughed as Jongin yelled and rubbed the back of his head, pouting as he reached back to hit Luhan in return. Luhan dived to the side into Sehun’s lap, avoiding the blow. Jongin turned back to the front, kicking one foot up onto the dashboard. “Whatever. You know I love you, sis.”

“Well obviously, otherwise I’d kick you out and you can bloody walk to your show,” Jungah agreed matter-of-factly, one hand on the steering wheel as she turned up the radio to some indie pop channel. Sehun sat up straight, awkwardly holding his bag in his lap as Luhan returned to an upright position and tucked his magazine into the car door.

He stayed silent for the car trip, gazing out the window, trying to settle his nerves as Luhan chatted (flirted) shamelessly with Jongin’s sister, apparently completely unaffected by their impending performance.

“What’s your team name, again?” Jungah asked after a small lull in the conversation.

“Kai and friends,” Jongin responded immediately, throwing his hands over his head at the sound of Luhan picking the magazine back up. Jungah leaned over the console and pushed his shoulder, snorting.

“Sehun, what’s your team name?” she asked again, glancing in the rearview mirror to see Sehun jump out of his daze at the sound of his name.

“Uh,” he stammered, “Exo Planet.”

Jungah blinked, raising her eyebrows. “How did you come up with that name?”

“Because it sounds cool,” Jongin defended quickly.

“Well…” Sehun started to explain hesitantly, “An exoplanet is what any planet that orbits a sun other than ours is called. The concept is that we’re from a parallel universe. Except more… science-y. I guess.”

“We’re alien dancers,” Luhan summed up, smirking broadly.

“I see.” Jungah nodded slowly, glancing around as she changed lanes. “And how high were you when you came up with that concept?”

Sehun flushed deep red, stuttering helplessly. Jongin groaned. “ _Bro_ ,” he whined, flopping dramatically in his seat. “Come on, it sounds freaking awesome. We need a cool team name.”

“Hey, I’m just trying to help.” Jungah held up both of her hands in surrender and Sehun gripped his seatbelt tight at the sight of the unattended steering wheel. “They’re going to ask you about it if you win, you know. You need a interview-worthy answer.”

“ _If_ we win?” Jongin laughed in disbelief. “Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“Are you doubting my love?”

Jongin pouted in defeat, chuckling lightly. Sehun found himself missing his brother suddenly; while he’d still been in school, they’d been more or less close, but since university had started, and his brother had moved onto campus, they had spoken less and less. He’d never come out to him, but he’d always suspected he knew. He wondered if Jongin was out to his sister. Come to think of it, he wondered if Jongin had outed Luhan and himself to his sister.

But he kept quiet as Luhan and Jongin began discussing what to say to interviewers ‘ _when_ ’ they won, and eventually they reached the venue.

“Alright tiny dudes,” Jungah announced, pulling up on the curb and stalling outside the stage door. “I’m off to have some lunch and hang out until the audience are allowed in. You have fun now. I’ll see you inside!”

“Thanks!” Jongin leaned over to give his sister a kiss before he opened the door. “You’re the best!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Jungah grinned. “You go in there and be the best for me too, okay?”

“Hell yeah.” Jongin smiled as the three of them clambered out of the car.

“Thank you,” Sehun and Luhan chorused, politely and cheerfully respectively, waving as Jungah pulled away. Jongin’s face darkened as soon as she’d turned the corner, drawing his arm back and punching Luhan hard in the shoulder.

“OW! FUCKING SHIT, DUDE, WHAT WAS THAT FOR?”

“For flirting with my _sister_ ,” Jongin snapped, “Do it again and I’ll fucking end you.”

“Jesus, chill,” Luhan whined, rubbing his arm. “Take a lesson from _Chanyeol_.”

Sehun snorted gracelessly, and Jongin diverted his glare in his direction. “He has a point,” Sehun noted, shrugging. “What are you afraid of, anyway? That Luhan would choose your sister over _me_?"

A strangely smug look crossed Jongin’s face. “That’s true,” he snickered while Luhan spluttered indignantly. “Alright, come on, faggots. Let’s go sign in.”

 

*

 

“We get our own _change room_?” Sehun all but screamed as soon as the stage hand left them, gaping at the light-adorned mirrors against the wall.

“God, you’re so cute,” Jongin laughed, dropping his bag carelessly on the floor. “Come on, let’s get changed and take a selfie with the sign.”

Sehun gazed helplessly at the green sheet of paper, roughly taped to the door, proclaiming ‘EXO PLANET’. “Holy shit.”

 

*

 

Sehun willed his hands to stop shaking as he applied his eye makeup, trying to ignore the noise in the room. Luhan and Jongin had gone out to chat with some of the other crews, and had brought one of the girl groups back with them to hang out and exchange Instagrams.

“Yeah, we just formed for this contest,” Jongin was telling them, “It’s going to be our first stage together.”

“That’s cute as hell,” one of the girls gushed, clutching her face. Sehun glanced at her in the mirror. He hadn’t caught their names, but she was the one with the green dip-dye. They each had a different colour in their hair. Their attention to detail with their outfits had his nerves going crazy.

“We heard one of the other groups got special permission to sing, as well,” the pink-haired one said.

Luhan whistled lowly. “They’re out for blood.”

“Yeah, especially since one of the judges is from LEDApple,” the blue-haired one agreed. “If they pull it off, they’re in a good position to land first place.”

“Jesus,” Jongin sighed. “Tough competition this year.”

“This year? Didn’t you just say this is your first time?” the green-haired one said.

“First time as a group,” the orange-haired one clarified. “Kai’s been in a couple of these before.”

“We almost did one together once,” Jongin nodded, kicking her leg lightly.

Sehun turned around. “Wait, you two know each other already?”

Jongin snorted. “Yeah, Seulgi and I go way back,” he snickered. “She’s actually the worst.”

“You mean the best,” the orange-haired one rolled her eyes. “Jesus, Kai, learn how to enunciate.”

“There’s nothing wrong with my pronunciation,” Jongin shot back. “And I don’t go by Kai these days.”

“Oh, what? Really? How come?”

“I don’t hang out with Kisook and them anymore,” Jongin kicked back in his seat.

“Oh, thank god,” Seulgi placed a hand over her heart. “About time, too. Those guys are assholes.”

“Yeah, it’s true. I was an asshole too, though.”

“Was?” Luhan yelped.

“Who shitting asked you?”

“Case in point,” Luhan held out both of his hands, palms up, at Jongin.

Jongin rolled his eyes. “I notice you’re all going by English names, though. How come you got left out of the cool stage name squad?”

“Excuse me,” interrupted the blue one. “Wendy is my real name.”

“Oh, really? I’m sorry,” Jongin retreated quickly. “That’s cool.”

“Damn straight.”

Jongin laughed, tossing his phone between his hands. “Did you guys do your own choreo?”

“Yeah, didn’t you?”

“Well, our friend did. He was actually going to dance today but he couldn’t make it. So we recruited Sehun.”

“Ah, I see.” Seulgi nodded. “One of our members couldn’t make it, either. But we knew that before we started working on the dance.”

“How come?” Luhan asked curiously.

“She’s young. She’s like fifteen. Her mother wouldn’t let her come.”

“Yikes.” Luhan pulled a face. “Tough break.”

“It’s okay. We do plenty of stuff on our YouTube channel with the five of us,” Wendy shrugged. “Win some, lose some.”

“You guys have a channel?” Sehun piped up, swiveling around in his chair.

“Yeah, we’ve had it for about a year now,” the green one confirmed.

“So do you have a lot of fans coming today?”

“Naturally.”

“You guys have fans?” Sehun interjected.

Jongin raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you have fans, Sehun? From your channel?”

“Dude, I haven’t updated that channel in like four years.”

“But you’re gonna update it tomorrow, right?”

“Oh my god, shut up.”

“Back to topic,” Luhan interrupted, saving him, “Which of you wrote your choreo?”

“We all did, more or less,” Seulgi tucked some hair behind her ear. “Mostly me and Irene, though.”

“It’s going to be super sexy and super gay,” the green-haired one said, “Don’t get too distracted, now.”

Jongin and Luhan laughed loudly, and Sehun let out an awkward chuckle.

“That’s alright, we have some super sexy, super gay moves of our own,” Jongin threw a finger between Sehun and Luhan. “Don’t be intimidated.”

Sehun nearly jumped out of his skin when the PA crackled from the roof.

_Red Velvet to wings for stage check. Red Velvet to wings. Thank you._

“That’s us,” the green-haired one slapped her thighs and got to her feet. “Nice to meet you guys! We might come back after the run-through.”

“Yeah, nice to meet you too!” Luhan waved.

“You’re not coming to watch?” Seulgi asked, looking at Jongin.

Jongin pointed at the screen mounted in the corner of the room. “We can watch from here.”

“You can’t hear the music, though.”

“We’ll be judging your synchronization without it.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“You’re not up to it?”

“You won’t see any problems with our synchronization, asshole.”

“Let me be the judge of that.”

Seulgi stuck out her tongue, following her friends out of the room.

“Wow,” Luhan commented as the door clicked shut behind them. “You were pretty mean to her.”

Jongin chuckled easily. “Nah. We’re actually pretty close. And she’s good — like, really good. I’m sure her crew are amazing too.”

“There’s pretty tough competition, isn’t there,” Sehun said quietly.

“Sehun, relax. We’re _fucking_ good. And we have an amazing routine. We’ll be fine.”

“Yeah,” Luhan agreed. “Sehun, you’re only realizing the stakes now, but Jongin, Yixing and I have known about this contest for ages. You know that confidence we had before? That was based on our experience. Trust us, we have a good shot.”

“Okay,” Sehun sighed, unconvinced, but slightly comforted. “I mean. I trust you.”

“Yeah you do,” Jongin grinned. “Come on, let’s just have fun.” He picked up the run sheet from the rack where their jackets were hanging. “We should be called up to stage check in about 15 minutes.”

 

*

 

_We’re all here! Really excited to see you perform! Fighting!!!!_

Sehun hit the lock button on his phone, hands trembling. He slapped his thighs nervously, closing his eyes and trying to concentrate on steadying his breathing. Jongin was absentmindedly tutting in the corner of the change room, and Luhan was texting quietly by himself. They both seemed completely relaxed, only adding to his own stress. He almost felt stupid for being nervous.

His phone lit up again and a photo popped onto his screen, a selfie Tao had taken from the hall. They really were _all_ there. Tao, Chanyeol, Baekhyun, Kris, Kyungsoo, Minseok, Jungah and Krystal. All of them there to see him dance. To see him compete. To see him _fuck up_.

He was going to be sick.

“Where you going?” Luhan looked up as he stumbled to the door, playing with his phone between his fingers.

“Bathroom,” Sehun rasped, flapping a hand.

“You okay?”

“Mm-hmm.” Sehun quickly escaped, trotting quickly to the restrooms and slumping over the sink. There was someone else there, but Sehun ignored him in favour of focusing on the cold ceramic under his sweaty palms.

“First contest?” the guy asked, and Sehun nodded once, resisting the urge to splash water on his face. He’d already done all his makeup.

The other guy chuckled, patting him on the back. “You’ll be fine, bro. We’ve all been there. Good luck!”

Sehun flinched at the contact, but managed a weak smile at his reassurance. “You too,” he squeaked, although he had no idea who the guy was, or what team he was competing with. He retched helplessly once he’d left, stomach clenching as he heaved over the sink, but nothing came out. He cupped his hand under the tap and turned it on, sucking the water out of his palm and sending up a silent prayer of thanks for setting spray. Water dripped down his chin, cool against his burning skin. He dry heaved a couple more times before his stomach settled, and he dabbed tentatively under his eyes, trying not to disturb his eyeliner.

He supposed he should go back to Luhan and Jongin.

“Are you alright?” Jongin asked as he slipped back into the dressing room.

“Yeah,” Sehun sighed, flopping into his seat. “I’m okay. Just nervous.”

“Should’ve brought some booze,” Jongin joked. “Calm you down.”

“Or molly,” Luhan piped up breezily.

“Oh my god,” Sehun tried to snort, but it came out a little hysterically. “Oh, actually, I think I do have some beta-blockers here.” He dug around in his bag for the pills he hated so much. He found them finally, sadly popping the tiny red pill out of the foil and placing it on his tongue. He really hadn’t wanted to be on anything today.

Luhan scooted over, gently pulling the pack out of Sehun’s hands and reading the label on the box. “Isn’t this for heart attacks?”

“It just slows your heart down to stop you panicking, physically,” Sehun sighed. “I don’t like being on them all the time, but it helps for like. Presentations and stuff. So I don’t get dizzy or hyperventilate or anything.”

“Well, whatever works,” Luhan shrugged and smiled, handing the pills back. Sehun shoved them into his bag again, feeling the heat in his face. “Nothing to be embarrassed about,” Luhan added with a light laugh.

“I guess,” Sehun sighed, kicking his feet sadly.

 

*

 

The next hours were a blur of panic and adrenaline. Sehun paced the room frantically while the first performers were on stage, joined soon by Jongin agitatedly drilling sections of the dance while they waited. Luhan hummed the song to himself, touching up his makeup unnecessarily with slightly trembling hands.

Then they were called to standby. Sehun could barely hear the announcer sending off the previous group through the static in his ears as they stood in the wings; and then everything was quiet.

The lights went off. Jongin moved in front of him and he fell into step automatically, searching out the marker for center stage and sliding into place behind him. Luhan took a final step and they were in position.

Sehun closed his eyes.

The music started.

And Sehun left his body. The thrum of the note shook him to the core, but he was barely aware of his own limbs; the crowd was a sea of black, and there was nothing except his mind, Jongin in front of him, the edge of the stage fading away into nothingness where the reach of the spotlight ended. He started dancing without thought, the dance he knew forwards and backwards, right from the depths of his soul, guiding his limbs and he threw his arms back like he had a thousand times and felt Luhan squeeze his elbows as he dived forward.

He was no longer trembling.

Somewhere in his mind, he imagined he could hear Chanyeol shout his name, rising above the wash of cheers.

 

*

 

They were one of the last few groups to perform, so Sehun didn’t return to his body until much later, when they were standing on stage with everyone else for the announcement of the winners.

He barely registered the MC announcing their name, a sea of white noise flooding his head as Jongin dragged him to the front to claim their trophy, Luhan’s screaming right beside his face nothing but a faint whistle above the rushing in his ears. His brain didn’t catch up until the MC shouted out the name of the first place winners and Sehun had to quickly grab Luhan in a tight hug to hide the sudden moisture in his eyes.

 _I did it_.

Luhan rubbed his back ecstatically, yelling words of comfort and delight into his ear.

 _We did it_.

Music began to blare around them and the announcer stood back, clapping around his microphone, and half the crowd began to shift. Photographers rushed onto the stage, rounding up the three winning teams. Luhan dabbed desperately at Sehun’s eyes, cleaning up the mess his tears had made, then swung him forcefully to the side so they could pose for the photo. Sehun beamed wider than he thought he ever had, arms around his two friends. Jongin offered up a brief sound byte to a local paper and happily accepted the business cards thrust at them. Luhan kept a hold of his waist, which Sehun was grateful for, until he heard his name being screamed from somewhere to his right.

He turned to the side to see his friends crowding around the edge of the stage. He fell to his knees beside them, throwing his arms desperately around Chanyeol and Tao’s shoulders. Luhan leapt heedlessly into the arms of Kris, who spun him around with a decidedly unmanly shriek, almost taking out Minseok and Kyungsoo. Jungah was bawling gracelessly as she reached out to Jongin and Krystal stood off to the side with Baekhyun, both of them awkwardly holding their hands in front of themselves, but with proud grins on their faces.

Kyungsoo shoved himself in between Tao and Chanyeol, pushing them aside for his own turn for a hug with Sehun. He took Sehun’s face into his hands, blinked twice, then beamed, standing on tippy toes to reach around Sehun’s shoulders above the edge of the stage.

Sehun could feel himself crying. Tao was also crying beside him, clinging to Chanyeol like a lifeline.

“Come on, guys,” Jongin laughed from the other side, extracting himself from his sister and making his way over to their shameless display of emotion. “Let’s go get our stuff and go get _smashed_.”

“Sounds good to me!” Luhan cheered, still koala-hugging Kris with his legs around his waist.

“Soo, dude, let go of Sehun, please,” Jongin requested, the politeness of his voice marred by his laughter. “We’ll go get our things and say goodbye to the other teams, and we’ll meet you outside in like twenty minutes, okay?”

Kyungsoo sighed, giving Sehun one last squeeze. “Okay.” He shoved his face into Sehun’s cheek briefly before he let go. “ _We’re so proud of you._ ”

“Thanks, Soo,” Sehun blubbered helplessly, letting Luhan and Jongin pull him backstage once more.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT WE GOT OVER 100 KUDOS ON THE LAST CHAPTER?? I'M CRYIN GUYS THANK YOU SO MUCH ;U; 
> 
> skdjfklajsdfkljafsklghaklsdjfkjdf i will never forget my first dance contest where we got our own change room it was the BLAZINGEST feeling dudes omg   
> Getting close to the end now! Final stretch!! And I think I'll do an epilogue as well, I haven't finished it yet but I should have it done by the time I put up the last chapter~ Then there'll be a sequel as well! That might take a while though. I want to focus on some of the members who got shafted for this storyline like Yifan and Joonmyun ^^ Would you guys be interested in that? :)


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Please. His legs are to die for. You could take a road trip across the span of his shoulders. His jaw could cut diamond. And when he smiles…” Luhan's face contorted, so lost in thought he didn’t see the mirth playing across Jongin’s lips. “Don’t you just want to eat him alive?”_
> 
> _“No,” Jongin snorted. “I don’t."_
> 
> _“There’s something wrong with you, then.”_
> 
> _“Well, either there’s something wrong with not being a Sehunophilic cannibal, or you’re just helplessly love-struck.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: PG-15  
> Warnings for underage drinking

 

 

 

“I can’t do it.”

“You can.” Minseok rolled his eyes. “Why are you being such a baby? Just plant one on him. It’s not like it’s the first time.”

“Yeah. Exactly.”

“I don’t follow.”

Luhan whined, running a hand through his hair and leaving a gel-tangled tuft sticking out of his scalp. Minseok calmly reached over and smoothed it out, holding his cigarette between his teeth to use both hands. Luhan closed his eyes, leaning affectionately into the touch.

“Help me, Baozi.”

Minseok snorted softly, momentarily plucking the cigarette out of his mouth to draw an untainted breath. “Lulu, if you can’t bring yourself to kiss _Sehun_ , I think you’re beyond help.”

“It’s not about the kiss. It’s about the confession.”

Minseok tutted, finishing up with Luhan’s hair and returning his right hand to his pocket. “Same thing, Luhan. If you can’t bring yourself to speak candidly to _Sehun_ , I think you’re beyond help.”

“We don’t speak that honestly to one another, though.”

“Oh?” Minseok raised an eyebrow, peering at Luhan through his smoke. “My mistake. I thought it was Sehun who always goes to you with his problems. I thought it was Sehun who you had a heart-to-heart with after the first time you kissed. I thought it was Sehun who you brought out of his shell enough for him to admit to sleeping with another student consistently through the semester. I thought it was Sehun who agreed to dance with you even though the thought of performing, and the memory of his old videos, makes him want to be sick. I thought it was Sehun who you have now _twice_ scrubbed permanent marker off, and taken care of when he got bullied.” He cleared his throat and shrugged. “I guess I must be wrong.”

Luhan placed a hand on his chest, grabbing his jacket. “Baozi, you’re making my heart hurt.”

“Then ask him out.” Minseok struggled to not roll his eyes. “I’m offended, you know,” he continued, when Luhan said nothing in response. “I don’t recall you having this much of a crisis when you confessed to _me_.”

That did drag a smile out of Luhan. “I knew you’d reject me, though.”

“I might not have.”

“Please. Don’t you remember what my hair was like back then? What my _skin_ was like?”

Minseok smiled fondly, thinking of their old middle school days. “Do you remember yelling at Yixing all the time because he was messing my pronunciation up with his accent?”

Luhan grinned. “Vividly.”

“And look at me now. Stuck with _your_ accent.”

“My accent is adorable. Beijing pride.” Luhan thumped his chest with his fist. His face sobered soon after, and he gazed at Minseok thoughtfully.

“What?”

“You haven’t kissed me in a while.”

“You know that’s not really my thing, Lulu.”

“Hey, we used to have some fun. Back in the day.”

“Then we grew up.”

“Speak for yourself.”

“You have a point.” Minseok ground the butt of his cigarette under his heel, tucking his hands in his armpits. “Nah, though. You act like a child all the time but you have grown up a lot, Luhan.”

“Have I?”

“Of course you have.” Minseok leaned over and kissed his cheek. “There. Happy?”

Luhan gave him a small smile and nodded once. “Yeah.”

Minseok chuckled under his breath. “I’ve never seen you so smitten with anyone as you are with Sehun. It’s actually refreshing to see.”

“Not even Chen?”

“You were never smitten with Jongdae, you just have the hots for him.” Minseok shook his head. “Same with me. You’re never shy about _anyone_ , because you know you’re cuter than they’ll ever be, you know they’ll fall in love with you, and you’ll have control over them. That’s why you gave up on Jongdae when you found out he’s just as bad as you are and that he can play you back, give as good as he gets. And you don’t have that kind of control over Sehun—”

“Pft, if you think I don’t have control over Sehun—”

“—You wouldn’t know what the fuck to do with yourself if he ever said no to you,” Minseok interrupted him right back, pushing him on the arm. “With me and Jongdae, it didn’t matter whether we said yes or no, because you didn’t care that much. You knew we had nobody but you.”

“You’re making me sound like such a manipulative—”

“You were.”

Luhan pouted and shut up, gesturing for him to continue.

“Anyway, Sehun does have other friends. He has other people who love him. He has other people he wants, and can have, and no matter how hard you’ve tried to shove yourself into his life, he’s never seemed to want you more than anyone else.”

“And you’re trying to convince me it _is_ a _good_ idea to confess to him?” Luhan yelped.

“Yes. It is.”

“This is the worst help ever.”

“He’ll say yes, Luhan.”

Luhan sighed, kicking his cigarette butt into the road and lighting another one immediately. “You don’t know that.”

“You’re really scared, aren’t you.”

Luhan stepped on Minseok’s shoe. “What was your first fucking clue, genius?”

“You’ve really fallen for him, haven’t you.”

“Have you always asked such stupid questions?”

Minseok smiled. “He’s going to be so good for you.”

“If I ever fucking ask him,” Luhan grumbled, then stopped and blinked. “Wait. Why am I roasting myself?”

Minseok was halfway through laughing when Jongin left their friends in the restaurant and marched out onto the street, flicking the sparkwheel of his lighter. “Sup, my dudes,” he announced himself, joining them by the streetlight. “What’s going on?”

“Luhan’s being a little bitch.”

Jongin snickered around his cigarette, pushing his face behind the lapel of his jacket to avoid the wind. “What’s new?”

“Rude,” Luhan sputtered, kicking Jongin’s ankle.

“What’s he being a little bitch about this time?” Jongin addressed Minseok, ignoring him.

“Same old. He was going to ask Sehun out tonight.”

Luhan let out a devastated squawk as Jongin checked his watch and raised his eyebrows. “There’s still time.”

Minseok snickered, patting Jongin on the shoulder. “Well, I’ll pass the baton to you, then. I’m going to go save Yifan from his fanboy. Jongin, talk some sense into him, won’t you? Or at least get him to grow a pair.”

“I’ll do my best,” Jongin laughed, clapping a hand against Minseok’s shoulder blade.

“No, don’t leave me with this kid,” Luhan whined, but Minseok just waved a hand as he wandered back into the restaurant where a rapidly-drunkening Tao was draping himself over a bemused-looking Kris.

Jongin peered at Luhan with an intense stare that Luhan did not appreciate.

“The fuck you want?”

“You really want to date Sehun?”

“Oh my god.”

“I’m serious.” Jongin grinned in a way that made him look very not-serious.

“Fuck off.”

“I mean what do you even see in him?”

“Wow,” Luhan deadpanned, taking a drag and screwing up his face at the taste of the extinguished cigarette. “That’s a wild thing to say about your best friend,” he commented as he searched for his lighter in his pocket, which seemed to have inexplicably become a black hole of lint, loose coins and random keys.

“Well, I mean he’s not that cute.”

“Are you out of your mind?” Luhan paused his pocket hunt to raise an eyebrow. “He makes even _me_ feel ugly.”

So many responses to that comment popped into Jongin’s mind, but he swallowed them. There was a fine line between banter and cruelty. “He’s got a nice figure, I guess,” he admitted with a shrug.

“ _Please_. His legs are to die for. You could take a road trip across the span of his shoulders. His jaw could cut diamond. And when he smiles…” his face contorted, so lost in thought he didn’t see the mirth playing across Jongin’s lips. “Don’t you just want to eat him alive?”

“No,” Jongin snorted. “I don’t.”

“There’s something wrong with you, then.”

“Well, either there’s something wrong with _not_ being a Sehunophilic cannibal, or you’re just helplessly love-struck.”

Luhan found his lighter finally and snapped it near Jongin’s nose. Jongin blinked slowly, unaffected but unamused. “If you set fire to my hair, Luhan, I will flat out murder you.”

“Shut up, then.”

“Is that it?”

“What do you mean?”

“You just think he’s attractive?”

“No, of course that’s not all.”

“Then what? His complete inability to look after himself? His lisp? That annoying habit he has of licking his lips every two seconds? His unpredictable mood shifts? His anxiety? His loose morals? What?”

Luhan frowned deeply, shocked into silence. He looked up at Jongin, who stared back evenly. “That’s fucked up, man. Why the shit would you say things like that?”

Jongin took a deep breath through the filter of his cigarette, held it for a moment, then blew out softly. “You’re not going to defend him?”

Luhan deflated immediately. “Oh.”

“Minseok is your friend, so he wants you to _hell-yeah-go-for-it_. I’m in Sehun’s corner, bro. If you haven’t considered his flaws, you’re not ready to date him.”

“Flaws?” Luhan took the fluttery nervousness in his heart and firmly shoved it to the back of his mind. “His lisp isn’t a flaw. His anxiety isn’t a flaw, the fuck. And as for loose morals? Who the hell am I to…” he trailed off, sighing. “I guess you’re right. Maybe I should wait for a little bit longer.”

“Take your time.” Jongin jabbed a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of their friends. “And maybe don’t ask him when he’s a bottle and a half of soju in.”

“You have a point.” Luhan narrowed his eyes and lightly punched Jongin in the arm. “You’re not just trying to discourage me so you can make a move first, right?”

“HA,” Jongin scoffed. “I could have Sehun in a heartbeat whether he’s your boyfriend or not, and you know it. But like I said, I don’t see him that way.”

“I maintain there’s something wrong with you.”

“Sorry for not having a thing for my best friend, I guess?” Jongin laughed lightly. “I know that might be a foreign concept for someone like you, but…”

“The fuck do you mean by ‘someone like me’?” Luhan demanded.

“You know normal people don’t usually make out with their friends all the time, right?”

“Well that just sounds boring.” Luhan sniffed.

Jongin smiled, kindly, almost sadly. “Just like… don’t ‘collect’ Sehun like one of your other pretty boys. Or at least be honest with yourself that that’s what you’re doing.” He shrugged suddenly. “Actually, do whatever you want. I’m not your owner. Just my opinion.”

Luhan thought his words over for a moment. “So you _do_ think he’s pretty.”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Jongin droned, turned on his heel and marched back inside.

 

*

 

Sehun was so happy it was almost bizarre. They’d come _third_. Top three! Holy _shit_. It hit him again and again as he got slowly drunker, and he suddenly threw himself to the side, wrapping himself around Chanyeol and giggling to himself. Chanyeol hugged him back without question, and Baekhyun’s pout of mock jealousy slid off his face at the sight of Sehun’s grin.

“How you doing?” Chanyeol asked, rubbing Sehun’s shoulder.

“We got a _trophy_ ,” Sehun stated. Chanyeol laughed, a deep rumbling noise that thrummed against Sehun’s cheek.

“Yeah you did,” he crowed, ruffling Sehun’s hair. “We’re so proud of you, Sehunnie.”

“Yes,” Sehun cheered into Chanyeol’s shirt. Jongin and Luhan were still outside, so Sehun took advantage of the moment to bask in his own glory. Of course they’d all worked hard, but damn it, the other two were good dancers already. He’d worked super duper hard. He deserved to pat himself on the back a bit.

Kyungsoo slid into the space beside him, beaming from ear to ear. “You were amazing, Sehun.”

“Yes I was,” Sehun agreed, the alcohol making it easy. Kyungsoo laughed, adding himself to the snuggle. Chanyeol stretched out one arm to include him, looking across the table to where Tao was stealing pieces of Kris’ food.

“Tao, you’re missing a moment,” Chanyeol called, and Tao gasped, abandoning Kris and his spoon to dive under the table. He popped up between Sehun’s legs shamelessly, staying on the ground but burying his face in their stomachs.

“YOU DID SO GOOD, SEHUNNIE,” he yelled, voice muffled.

“Shit,” Baekhyun drawled, pulling out his phone to take a photo of the drunken pile. “You guys are cute as fuck. Squad goals out of ten.”

“Want in on the pile?” Sehun grinned, reaching around Chanyeol and flapping his wrist.

“Yeah, alright.” Baekhyun squished into Chanyeol’s other side, placing Sehun’s hand on his waist. “That was the most amazing show I’ve ever been to. You should be proud of yourself, Sehun.”

“I am.” Sehun hummed, resting his cheek on Tao’s head and enjoying the way the world spun around his eyes.

“What gay shit is going on here?” he heard Jongin’s voice chime from somewhere to roughly his left.

“We’re celebrating me,” Sehun snorted, waving a hand dismissively. “Don’t need you. Shoo.”

“Wow, I feel so loved.” Jongin sat down next to Kris, picking at Tao’s food. “But that’s _fine, I guess_. You worked hard, Sehunnie. I’m proud of you.”

Sehun giggled, sitting up and fixing Tao’s hair where his cheek had messed it up. “Couldn’t have done it without you, Jongin,” he admitted shyly.

“Gay,” Chanyeol droned into his temple. Sehun swatted him away good-naturedly.

“Is Luhan _still_ outside?” Kris leaned on the back of his chair, looking towards the exit. “Is he okay?”

“He was fine when I came in,” Jongin shrugged, but looked over as well. “Someone wanna check on him?”

“I’ll go!” Sehun chirped, squirming away from his friends.

“You’re leaving us?” Chanyeol gasped, pouting deeply.

“You’ll be fine. Cuddle your boyfriend,” Sehun stuck out his tongue, crawling under the table to escape.

“Wait! Sehun! Don’t go!” Chanyeol cried, and Sehun turned to frown at him in confusion. Chanyeol widened his eyes. “Luhan’s luring us out one by one. These,” he gestured at Minseok and Jongin, “are _clearly_ evil clones. Stay safe. With us. Inside.”

Sehun blinked twice and turned his gaze to Baekhyun. “Don’t let him drink any more.”

“On it,” Baekhyun sniggered, holding both of a whining Chanyeol’s hands captive.

Sehun stumbled to the street, looking around for Luhan, who perked up at the sight of him and waved from underneath a streetlamp. Sehun wandered over, looping an arm around his waist and smiling prettily. “Hello.”

“Hey, sexy.” Luhan grinned. “How are you feeling?”

“Fucking fantastic,” Sehun sighed happily. “You?”

“Over the moon,” Luhan laughed, rubbing Sehun’s shoulder. “What are you doing out here?”

“Looking for you. You’ve been out here for _ages_. Come back in and join the party,” Sehun cajoled.

“In a second. Come here,” Luhan pulled Sehun away from the light, around the corner into the alley beside the restaurant. “Perfect.”

“For what?”

“For super sneaky making out in public,” Luhan snorted, pressing Sehun against the wall. “Is that okay?”

“Oh, right. Of course.” Sehun giggled, sliding his arms over Luhan’s shoulders and leaning down without hesitation. Luhan pushed up onto the balls of his feet to meet him, kissing him hungrily, easily, figuring that if he wasn’t going to ask him out tonight, he may as well have some fun.

“Tonight was awesome,” he sighed against Sehun’s cheek. “Ugh, we only just finished, but I want to dance again.”

Sehun laughed cheerfully, fixing a strand of Luhan’s hair. “I’ll make sure I come watch when you do.”

Luhan frowned, hands stilling on Sehun’s waist. “What are you talking about?”

“Well, next time Yixing won’t be busy right? So you don’t need me.”

“What the fuck?”

“What do you mean what the fuck? Jongin only asked me because I happened to be around when Yixing had to pull out. The three of you dance together all the time. It’s your crew, I’m just a stand in.”

“Sehun,” Luhan said slowly, softly, a serious look suddenly in his eyes. “You don’t really think that, right?”

“What do you mean?”

Luhan had to take a moment to calm himself, removing one hand from Sehun to rub his eyes. “When Yixing gets back, it’s going to be the four of us together. We didn’t make this crew for three people! We made it for friends to dance as a team! We didn't even have a crew established before you came along, we made it specifically for _this competition_. Fuck, Sehun, you came up with our fucking name! This team is _you_ , this team is _us_ , you can’t just—” Luhan took a breath and his next words were unbelievably quiet, a timid plea dancing fearfully to Sehun’s ears. “You don’t _want_ to leave, do you?”

“Of course— I mean— you — I— but you guys—”

“No, no, hold on,” Luhan interrupted his helpless stammering. “Ignore us for a moment. Sehun. Tell me honestly. Do you want to dance?”

Sehun swallowed. “Yes.”

“Do you want to dance with us?”

“I want… I want to be able to dance with you guys.”

Luhan let out a frustrated groan, dropping his head down onto Sehun’s chest. “Holy fucking shit, Sehun.”

Sehun patted his back awkwardly. “I don’t want to drag you down.”

“You are unbelievable,” Luhan sighed, “Where are you getting these thoughts from? You didn’t drag us down, Sehun! We placed! With you! Are you serious right now?”

Sehun closed his eyes, willing the lump in his throat down. “You would have got first place with Yixing.”

“Why do you think that?” Luhan screamed, pulling away and reaching up to clutch his hair. “Why, Sehun? Jongin and I have both competed in that contest before and neither of us have ever gotten any prizes at all! This is a first for us _too_! You’re acting like we failed!”

“No, no, no,” Sehun said hurriedly, “I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant, I didn’t know— I just— Luhan, I just…” he buried his face in his hands, “You saw me in that dressing room. I was a fucking mess, I couldn’t even function without medication, I mean… I’m sorry. I’m sorry Luhan, I didn’t mean to ruin your celebration, I didn’t mean to… I didn’t… I didn’t mean… I’m sorry.” He sank slowly to the ground, willing the tears back. Everything he said just made things worse. Why did he ruin everything every time he opened his fucking _mouth_?

Luhan took a second to regain his composure and carefully sat down next to him, listening to Sehun try to control his breathing while he lit a cigarette and leaned back against the wall.

“Why don’t you love yourself?” he wondered aloud, his free hand hanging on his own knee even as his leg pressed against Sehun’s. “Why do you think everything is your fault unless it’s good?”

He wasn’t expecting an answer, and Sehun didn’t provide one, but he did slowly bring his hands away from his face and stare at the concrete beneath his feet.

“Hey,” Luhan said gently, turning to look at him with an expression full of sadness and concern. “I know nothing I say will help, I know your brain won’t let you believe me, but I’m going to say some things that are all completely true, okay?” he paused, but Sehun didn’t move, glassy eyes gazing blankly forward. He continued anyway. “You’re a great dancer. Your passion and talent show through whenever you move. You’re a wonderful person. You love your friends so much and genuinely care about our wellbeing. Even when you’re black out drunk you’re worrying about Kyungsoo, even when you’re hungover you’re making sure we all drink enough water, you stress about Jongdae lending us money, you saw the good in Baekhyun even when he screwed you over just to see if he could. Tao told me how much you helped him when he first came, how you helped him fit in, learn the language, do his homework, all of that. You’re smart. You’re hardworking. And we love you, Sehun.” He reached over and took Sehun’s hand, reassured by Sehun letting him weave their fingers together and the small squeeze he felt against his knuckles. “I wish I could prove to you, literally nobody has a bad thing to say about you. We all love you. I love you.”

His heart was pounding in his chest but he was tipsy enough to keep talking. “I wish you didn’t beat yourself up so much, you know? I wish you could see yourself the way I do.”

“That’s so cheesy,” Sehun choked out after a pause, a tentative smile twitching at the corner of his mouth.

“You know me,” Luhan laughed weakly. “Cheese supreme.”

“True,” Sehun agreed shakily, shifting closer and dropping his head onto Luhan’s shoulder. Luhan wrapped an arm around his shoulders, subtly taking in the smell of his hair even as rejection settled in his stomach. Sehun had either not noticed, or was flat-out ignoring, his tiny confession. Right? He would be reacting if he knew, surely?

But he swallowed it down. _It’s not about me_ , he thought to himself sadly, rubbing Sehun’s arm. _It’s not about me right now. It’s about making Sehun feel better._

“Do you think we’re all stupid?”

“Huh?”

Luhan could feel Sehun’s nose nudging against his throat and wanted to cry. “Do you think we’re stupid? Because we all think you’re the best. So if you’re not, that makes _everyone_ wrong.”

“Noooo,” Sehun whined, nuzzling further under Luhan’s chin, and Luhan’s entire soul _ached_. “Don’t play with my mind. That’s mean.”

His hands snaked around Luhan’s waist and Luhan didn’t trust himself to speak. He took the liberty of kissing the top of Sehun’s head and was rewarded almost immediately with Sehun’s lips on his neck. He tossed his cigarette to the side, gently running his fingers over Sehun’s cheek.

He wanted to kiss him. He wanted to kiss him _so bad_ , and he could probably get away with it too, but he wasn’t sure if he trusted himself to stop. He wanted to skip Jongdae’s after-after-party completely and just take Sehun home, lay his claim, and wake up slowly the next day beside him.

“Are you two okay? You’re missing the fun.”

Luhan sighed as Sehun pulled away, smiling reassuringly up at Baekhyun. “We’re fine. Just talking.”

“Just talking? Luhan’s not trying any funny business with you, is he?”

Luhan did not appreciate Baekhyun’s smirk, and would have glared at him if it weren’t, well, completely true. He settled for rolling his eyes instead, posing no opposition to Baekhyun coming over and helping Sehun to his feet.

“Come back in. Chanyeol’s worried about you, but he banged his knee on the table trying to get up to look for you and now he’s having an existential crisis. Please save him.”

Sehun laughed and Luhan had to smile despite himself, dusting himself off as he avoided watching Sehun lean his weight on Baekhyun and let himself be led back into the restaurant.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> O SHIT U THOUGHT
> 
> I'm super struggling with this epilogue guys I had some not-so-bubbly loose ends to tie up and it's so sad :( I'll keep workin to get a well rounded happy ending for u tho this is supposed to be a feel good friendship story!!! Please don't come for me tho I won't angst it up on you I promise <3 
> 
>  
> 
> (((((plenty of time for that in the sequel n_n)))))


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Hm.” Kyungsoo gazed at him with a strange expression on his face, and Sehun squirmed._
> 
> _“What?”_
> 
> _“What yourself? You fall in love with everyone, Sehun. You don’t feel anything for Luhan?"_
> 
> _“Should I?” Sehun swiped his thumb over his phone, clearing his prints from the screen protector. Kyungsoo pursed his lips and sent him an entirely unimpressed face over the breakfast bar, and Sehun wilted. “Maybe just a little bit,” he admitted quietly._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: G

 

 

 

“So, did he end up asking you?”

“Did who end up asking me what?” Sehun asked, organizing the cards in his hand. Kyungsoo looked up interestedly, but said nothing.

Jongdae took a sip of his drink, glancing over at where Luhan was drooling onto the couch cushion, one hand resting limply on Sehun’s hip. “Nothing. Never mind.”

 

*

 

“I see what you mean about everyone kissing everyone,” Kyungsoo commented lightly the next day, a pot of noodles bubbling on the stove behind him. Chanyeol and Tao had gone home to nap off their hangovers, so it was just the two of them, chatting quietly while Kyungsoo made lunch for them and his mother.

Sehun felt nervous suddenly, sensing Kyungsoo about to pass judgment on his friends. “It’s nice, right?”

“Sure.” Kyungsoo paused in chopping carrots to smile up at him reassuringly. “You seem happy.”

“I am happy. It’s nice. I never…” Sehun chuckled sadly, “I love you guys, but you know… I never thought I’d meet other people like us. I didn’t think anyone else would like me without the history we have, you know?”

“I told you before, didn’t I? You have nothing to worry about, Sehun. Life is out there.”

“I know.” Sehun smirked at the words. Trust Kyungsoo to come up with an ‘I-told-you-so’ for any given situation.

“Jongdae and Yixing are cute.”

“Oh my god, aren’t they?” Sehun gushed, clutching his face.

Kyungsoo snickered. “It was nice to see. The way you described it, I was worried Yixing would be smitten with this dude who didn’t really care about him, but looking at them together… they really work as a couple.”

“Yixing’s asexual, I think.”

“Wouldn’t surprise me.”

“Yeah. He’s never said so, but they keep making comments about how he’ll never fuck Jongdae even though they’ve been together for a while. I think Jongdae being how he is takes the pressure off for Yixing to feel like he has to satisfy him.”

“They make it work,” Kyungsoo summarized with a slow nod. “They have something deep, it’s obvious. It’s weird to see from high-schoolers.”

“It’s refreshing.”

“Sure.” Kyungsoo swiped the carrot slices into a pot, moving onto zucchini. “What about Luhan?”

“What _about_ Luhan?”

“He was basically attached to you the whole night, Sehun. Did you think I wouldn’t ask?”

“He’s just like that.” Sehun rolled his eyes. “I already told you.”

“Hm.” Kyungsoo gazed at him with a strange expression on his face, and Sehun squirmed.

“What?”

“What yourself?” Kyungsoo turned his attention back to the vegetables. “You fall in love with everyone, Sehun. You don’t feel anything for him?”

“Should I?” Sehun swiped his thumb over his phone, clearing his prints from the screen protector. Kyungsoo pursed his lips and sent him an entirely unimpressed face over the breakfast bar, and Sehun wilted. “Maybe just a little bit,” he admitted quietly. “He kisses me a lot.”

“He sure does.” Kyungsoo ran the chopping board under the tap, rinsing green off the surface with his fingers. “And what about Jongin? You’re very close with him too, now.”

“But Jongin likes you,” Sehun pointed out, jumping on his escape from this Luhan conversation. Kyungsoo said nothing, but sighed as he brought the flat of his knife down a little too hard on an innocent clove of garlic. “Still not into him, huh?” Sehun mused, eyeing Kyungsoo’s hands warily.

“We’ve never had a conversation. He can’t like me. It’s not possible.”

“He’s heard things about you. He just wants to get to know you better.”

“That’s _not_ all he wants, and you know it.”

“I know,” Sehun conceded, “I’m just biased because I’d love to be the object of his affections. I’m projecting onto you, don’t mind me.”

“I don’t want to be anyone’s ‘ _object_ ’,” Kyungsoo muttered, mincing the garlic violently.

“Oh.” Sehun tilted his head to the side, curious. Kyungsoo didn’t usually talk about himself much — he was much better at expressing his friends’ emotions than his own. “Jongdae asked me if you were gay the other day.”

“Did he.” Kyungsoo’s voice was steady, but his hands didn’t stop moving. “What did you say to him?”

“I said I didn’t know,” Sehun admitted softly, watching Kyungsoo’s expression carefully. “You’ve never told me.”

“There’s nothing to tell,” Kyungsoo shrugged. “I’ve never liked anyone, so I don’t know either.”

“Oh.”

“Sehun.”

“What?”

“Oh. Sehun. You.” Kyungsoo glanced up and Sehun snorted, rolling his eyes at the terrible joke. Kyungsoo grinned, lightening the mood. “If I ever figure it out, you’ll be the first to know. But for now, I just don’t have any interest in dating anyone, so…” 

“That’s cool.” Sehun reached over to steal a strip of carrot and munched on it happily, paying no mind to the slap Kyungsoo landed on his wrist. “You know… you know I don’t care what you do, right? You don’t talk about yourself for this stuff so I was curious, but I’m still your friend no matter what.”

“Thanks, Sehun.” Kyungsoo smiled, pulling the bowl of raw vegetables out of Sehun’s reach. “You don’t say things like that explicitly, but I do know.”

“Good.”

Kyungsoo moved over to the stove, pulling the noodles off. “I’m going to start frying. Put some music on?”

“Okey dokey.”

 

*

 

“Can I ask you something?” Jongin mumbled around a mouthful of crackers, thoroughly beating Sehun’s ass at Mario Kart.

Sehun cursed, throwing his body to the side as though that would help Waluigi turn the corner better, kicking Jongin in the leg for distracting him. Jongin kicked back indignantly, and the warfare turned from digital to physical as they both struggled to fight while keeping their eyes on the screen.

“FUCK YOU!” Sehun howled, legs tangled around Jongin’s neck as his weight on his elbow drove him into a wall and Bowser went flying over the finish line ahead of him. Jongin whooped in victory and threw his controller aside, quickly hauling ass out of Sehun’s reach and protecting himself with a cushion. Sehun glared at him viciously over the back of the couch, clawing himself up to a sitting position again and huffing bitterly. “You play dirty.”

“Hey, you kicked me first!”

“BECAUSE YOU DISTRACTED ME!”

“That sounds like the excuse of someone who’s shit at Mario Kart.”

“Sit the fuck down, you asshole, I’m going to destroy you.”

“Can I ask my question now?” Jongin snorted, cautiously settling back into his seat and bracing himself for Sehun to kick him again. He was not disappointed, and grabbed Sehun’s foot as it shot towards his shoulder, grabbing his ankle in one arm and tickling the sole with his free hand. Sehun screamed, writhing desperately to free himself and thrashing his other leg at Jongin until he let go and Sehun could retreat to his corner, panting heavily.

“You guys are so fucking loud,” Taemin commented, circling the couch to grab the pack of cigarettes on the table.

“HEY! Those are mine!” Jongin protested, and Taemin sneered at him.

“I’m helping you quit,” he shot back, “You should be thanking me.”

“You should quit too if you can’t afford your own!” Jongin whined, but made no move to get his cigarettes back, retrieving his controller from the floor. “Asshole. Whatever. Prepare to have your ass kicked again, Sehunnie.”

“What did you want to ask?” Sehun prompted, sipping his drink while Jongin scrolled through the track menu.

“What? Oh, right. Do you have a crush on Luhan?”

Sehun choked, bubbles going right up his nose as he carefully dropped the can of Welch’s onto the coffee table and tried to calm his burning throat. Jongin grinned broadly, offering no assistance as he watched Sehun’s struggle gleefully. “Is that a yes?”

“Why… why would you ask that?” Sehun coughed, eyes watering. “Does it look like I have a crush on Luhan?”

Jongin raised an eyebrow. “You answer my question and I’ll answer yours.”

“I don’t!” Sehun squawked, heat creeping up his cheeks.

Jongin shoved his face close. “Are you sure?”

“Yes!”

“I’m just checking.”

“Why do you care? Do _you_ like him?”

Jongin rolled his eyes. “Please. And for the record, to answer your question, no it doesn't look like you have a crush on him either.”

Sehun tried another go at his drink and smoothed his hair grumpily. “Then what was the point of this little conversation?”

Jongin smirked, settling his gaze on the screen. “Head start.”

“YOU ABSOLUTE DICK—”

 

*

 

“Did you ask him?”

“Yeah, bro. He said no.”

“But did he say it like, convincingly? Or was he just trying to hide it from you?”

Jongin sighed, rubbing his eyes as he adjusted his phone against his ear. “Dude, I don’t know. I asked your question. If you want a psychological analysis of his response, get it yourself.”

He could hear the dejection in Luhan’s tone at his next words. “Yeah… okay… fine. Thanks anyway.”

“Hey, man,” Jongin tried hesitantly, chewing his lip. “Just because I don’t want to get involved doesn’t mean you should give up, you know. Make your own decisions, okay?”

“Yeah,” Luhan acknowledged, but still sounded sad as he hung up; and Jongin was left to lie back in silence, reflecting that he probably would be just as terrible at asking Kyungsoo out, too.

 

*

 

_Sehuunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn_

_Luluhan~ what’s up?_

_Are you coming to jd’s tonight?_

_Can’t, sadly TT_TT. It’s track meets this weekend and I’m going to Tao’s showcase this afternoon too._

_Oh, okay  
_ _Maybe next time?_

_Oh yeah, for sure. Can’t have you lot thinking you can have fun without me HAHAHA_

_Wow._

_Just kidding~ love you luhanie <3 _

_Brat. You’re not kidding_

_:P_

*

 

“Wow, look who finally made it.”

“Shut up, Chanyeol, I’m still early,” Sehun grumbled, sliding into his seat beside Baekhyun. “Besides, Tao’s like a master or some shit, he’s gonna be up right at the end.”

“Yeah, but you’re still the last of _us_ to arrive, therefore you’re late.” Chanyeol stuck out his tongue, sitting back in his seat in satisfaction. Sehun scoffed, taking off his jacket and slipping it under his own chair.

“Yeol, can you get me something to drink?” Baekhyun implored, running his fingers over Chanyeol’s arm, and Chanyeol immediately sprang out of his seat to oblige, pecking Baekhyun’s head as he ran off.

“Yikes,” Sehun snorted. “Baek, you have him well trained.”

“I know.” Baekhyun laughed, but his shy little smile gave him away. He looked around before Sehun had the opportunity to tease him about it, raising an eyebrow at the empty seats on Sehun’s other side. “No Luhan?”

Sehun frowned, stilling suddenly and turning to look at him with a weird expression on his face. “Okay, what’s going on?”

“What do you mean?”

“Did something happen with Luhan? Why is everyone asking me about him?”

“Oh, are they? Everyone else must be getting impatient too.”

Sehun waited for clarification, but none was forthcoming. “Baekhyun, what the fuck are you talking about.”

Baekhyun flicked some dirt out from under his nails, crossing his legs. “Luhan wants to ask you out.”

Something dropped in Sehun’s stomach and he swallowed, staring at an entirely unaffected Baekhyun. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re fucking with me, right?” he demanded, glancing over at Kyungsoo, who shrugged without looking up while Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “He’s not — no, he’s just like that.”

“Like what?” Baekhyun asked sweetly.

“Affectionate. He’s like that with everyone.”

“Um,” Baekhyun laughed incredulously, “No, he’s not.”

“Of course he is. They’re all like that, it’s just a thing.”

Baekhyun stared at him for a long moment, blinking slowly before reaching over, grabbing Sehun’s face, and peering deep into his eyes. “Oh, wow. You’re serious.”

Sehun swatted him away, indignation filling his chest. “Shut up, you know I’m right.”

Baekhyun took a deep breath, keeping his eyes fixed on Sehun’s. “Sehun. Jongdae is like that. Not the others.”

“Of course they—”

“The others _are_ ,” Baekhyun explained patiently, “ _With Jongdae_. Kris only kisses Jongdae. Yixing only kisses Jongdae. I only saw Minseok kiss someone once, and it was Jongdae. And Luhan only kisses Jongdae and _you_. Are you serious? You never noticed?”

Sehun sighed. “Kyungsoo, tell him he’s wrong.”

Kyungsoo just pulled a face, shrugging again silently before turning his attention back to his phone.

“Et tu, Soo?” Sehun gasped, whipping his head around as Chanyeol returned with drinks for Baekhyun and himself. “Yeol, help,” he whined, “These two both think Luhan likes me.”

Chanyeol started violently, and Baekhyun scrambled out of the way of the ice tea spilling over the rim of the cup he was holding. “HA, HA HA,” Chanyeol laughed nervously, “That’s, uh, ridiculous! Why would they say something like that?”

Sehun’s jaw dropped in betrayal. “You think so too!” he screeched, thrusting a finger accusingly into Chanyeol’s face.

Chanyeol grimaced, his deer-in-the-headlights expression fading to acceptance. “Can you blame me? You two would be _adorable_ ,” he groaned, his arm finding its way apparently instinctively around Baekhyun’s shoulders. “If he doesn’t ask you out soon, you should.”

Sehun spluttered, flushing as he turned back to the front and kicked Baekhyun in the shin for laughing. “You’re all delusional,” he muttered, pulling out his phone. “Come on, let’s take a selfie for Tao.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I should say something about Kaisoo but like. I feel like this chapter should have cleared some of that up, and they make an appearance in the epilogue too.   
> Taoris' line will not be resolved in the next two chapters but they will have an entire arc in the sequel. I'm still playing with that bc it focuses on yifan and also joonmyun, whose timelines are both separate and concurrent, so i'm not sure how to format it... 
> 
> I want to thank everyone so far for the amazing and positive response for this fic, it's been my pet project for years and I only really expected to have it on here so I could tell myself I'd done it. I genuinely reread all of your comments whenever I can to cheer myself up and inspire myself to work hard and keep going, I appreciate every single one of you who takes the time to send me your words, and to everyone who silently reads and supports the story too. It's so interesting to see what parts stand out to you, obviously I have my favourite sections and characters, and sometimes the things you guys pick up on are parts that I barely remember writing haha~ You've really helped me to see the story in a new light, notice the flaws, consider the things that don't make sense, the things that i should expand, the things that do work. I am so grateful to all of you.  
> Thank you. 
> 
> Wow that was very verbose for a short chapter haha. I'll be updating again in 24 hours because of the weekend~


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: R  
> /cups hands around mouth/ THERES POOOORRRRNNNNN

 

 

 

Sehun approached the door hesitantly, double checking the address Luhan had texted him before swallowing his anxiety and ringing the bell.

There was a long pause following the muffled sound of the chime, and Sehun considered sending Luhan a text to let him know he’d arrived, but just as he swiped across the screen he heard someone yell “ _coming_!” and stomp hastily towards the entrance. The door flew open violently and Sehun found himself peering into the face of someone he didn’t recognize with a wide chin and hefty biceps poking out of his loose tank top. “Yes?”

“Um,” Sehun stuttered, “I’m here to see Luhan?”

“Oh! Sure, come in, I’ll see if he’s up.” The guy waved him inside and ran off without closing the door, leaving Sehun to take off his shoes himself. “Luhan!” he howled, disappearing around a corner while a handful of twenty-somethings, peered at Sehun interestedly from the kitchen. He bowed at them awkwardly, and one of the girls waved back.

“Are you Jongdae?”

“Um… no,” Sehun started slightly at the question while the first guy continued yelling at Luhan from down the hall. “I’m Sehun.”

“Oh, right. Well, nice to meet you,” she smiled, but was interrupted in introducing herself by Luhan stumbling into the kitchen in shorts and house slippers, still ranting in Mandarin at the first guy, who was hanging off his shoulders.

“ _Sorry, Sehun_ ,” Luhan tacked onto the end of his sentence, forgetting to switch back to Korean in his lack of punctuation and the guy on his back gasped.

“ _Oh, does he speak Chinese?_ ”

“ _No, he doesn’t, oh my god Jackson you fat ass get off me holy shit…_ ” he finally managed to shake him off and beckoned to Sehun, backing into the corridor again. “Come on in, ignore these idiots.”

“I resent that!” Jackson called after him in an offended tone, planting his hands on his hips. Luhan flipped him off, placing a hand on Sehun’s back and pushing him out of the kitchen.

“Sorry,” he said again, stopping by a doorway and gesturing for Sehun to go in first. “They’re so noisy.”

“Says you,” Sehun couldn’t resist replying, ducking into the room and taking it in. It was small, a single bed against one wall, a desk less than a metre away under a window on the opposite wall, and a mirrored sliding door on his right that he assumed hid a closet. Luhan closed the door behind them, pushing his laptop aside to flop down onto his mattress, where he had clearly been before Sehun arrived. The rest of the room was surprisingly tidy, the desktop clutter-free, and the floor clear except for a couple of stray shoes, a soccer ball, and various cables running from the single power strip under the desk.

“Thanks for coming over,” Luhan said casually as Sehun stepped around to sit next to him on the bed.

“Of course. Is that your family?” Sehun jerked his head at the bedroom door.

Luhan laughed. “Nah. Just housemates. My family’s all in China still,” he shrugged, keyboard rattling as he typed his password into the laptop. “Wanna watch a show with me?”

“Sure. Are you here by yourself?” Sehun asked in surprise, adjusting one of Luhan’s pillows behind his back.

“Well, I came with Yixing, but he lives somewhere else,” Luhan responded breezily.

“I didn’t know that,” Sehun pouted, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket and tossing it onto the foot of the bed. “How come?”

“It’s not that uncommon,” Luhan shrugged. “Lots of parents send their kids to study in other countries. I thought it was pretty common here, too, right? Yixing and I knew a lot of kids from middle school who scattered all over the world for high school. My parents wanted to send me to England, actually, but I was too dumb.” He laughed loudly, but there was an undertone of bitterness that Sehun didn’t miss.

He opted to ignore it for now, crossing his legs and leaning against the wall. “How long have you been here?”

“In the country? Since middle school. I was in a homestay kind of situation for a few years, but it sucked, so I moved into this house as soon as I turned eighteen. So close to two years now.”

“Oh.” Sehun played with the hem of his jeans, watching as Luhan sent off a couple of Chinese sentences on an instant messenger he didn’t recognize, and then close the window.

“Am I boring you?” Luhan smiled, moving the laptop onto the bed in front of them and tapping out a rhythm on his thighs.

“No, not at all. I just. I didn’t know.”

“I guess it wouldn’t really have come up, huh…” Luhan shrugged. “Well, you know now!”

“Yeah.” Sehun paused, then sucked his lips in and reached over to place a hand on Luhan’s head. “Are you okay? You seemed pissed in your texts this morning.”

Luhan stilled under his hand, letting out a long, slow breath as his smile faltered. “Was it that obvious?”

Sehun wiggled his fingers, lightly massaging Luhan’s scalp, huffing a giggle at the way Luhan leaned into his touch. “Kind of.”

Luhan shrugged, but his voice was soft. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure? What happened?”

Luhan chewed on his lip, fiddling with his own hands. “Can I ask you something?”

Sehun’s heart thudded in his chest. “Of course,” he replied, barely able to hear his own words over the rush in his ears.

“Are you out to your parents?”

_Oh, crap._

“No,” Sehun answered slowly, carefully combing his hands through Luhan’s hair. “Are… are you?”

Luhan shifted slightly closer, closing his eyes. “I am now.”

“Oh.” Sehun took in the expression on Luhan’s face, the stress around his eyes, the sadness in the set of his mouth, the anger creasing his brow. “That’s… wow. I’m sorry, Luhan.”

“I mean, just…” Luhan sighed again. “What is it about parents, you know? That they can make you feel so shit in a way nobody else can?” he curled into Sehun’s side at the arm that snaked around his shoulders, wrapping his own around Sehun’s waist. “And my brain… my brain is just whirling, I can’t stop thinking about everything, everything I said, everything they said, and like… you know how much I slack off at school, but I was happy, I love this place, I love all of my friends, but if I don’t get into a good university here, I… I have to go home over the new year and they might not let me come _back_ now, so now like everything I do _matters_ and I’m so scared, Sehun, I don’t want to… I wish I could… I just…”

“Hey,” Sehun whispered softly, pulling him close and rubbing his back comfortingly. “Hey, breathe, it’s okay. It’s all going to be okay.”

“It actually _probably_ won’t be,” Luhan shot back, voice straining over the lump in his throat. “What if it’s not, Sehun? All of my money comes from them. I have to do whatever they want me to do, I can’t get out if they decide to keep me there, if they think I’m out of control, I’ll just have to deal with whatever they throw at me; I can’t… I actually don’t have a _choice_.”

Sehun had nothing to say. His brain was a blank mess of panic and worry, but nothing helpful. He just squeezed Luhan tighter, holding him close and waiting for his breathing to settle.

“I’m sorry.” Luhan pulled away when he finally stopped hyperventilating, “I don’t want to dump this on you, there’s nothing you can do, the damage is done. You don’t need to hear this shit.” He palmed at his eyes, curling into his knees. “Sorry, I just need a second.”

“Luhan, please don’t be like that,” Sehun tried softly. “I’m sorry I can’t help, but I’m your friend, I care about you.” He shifted onto his knees, turning to face him. “Thank you for telling me. Is there anything I can do to make you feel better? What do you need?”

Luhan let out a weird kind of sob, dragging his hands down his face. “There’s nothing I can do. I’m panicking, but there’s nothing I can do. I can’t stop thinking about it, Sehun. I’m sorry I dragged you out here, but I couldn’t be by myself, I just can’t, my whole brain is screaming at me.”

“It’s _fine_ , Luhan.” Sehun grabbed his hands, massaging his knuckles with his thumbs, watching Luhan’s eyelashes flutter against his cheeks until an idea hit him. “Hey. Listen to me.”

Luhan looked up, huffing in another sob as their eyes met. “You know how I’m kind of a nerd, right?”

Luhan laughed shakily. “Yeah.”

“Yeah. Every break, a little bit after school finishes, Kyungsoo and I study together to prepare for the next term. Do you want to come join us? We’ll get Kyungsoo to drill you. You still have another whole term before entrance exams, you can pick up your grades no problem, then that’ll be one less thing to worry about.”

“Sehun, I don’t know if one term is going to be enough to—”

“I guarantee it,” Sehun interrupted confidently. “Kyungsoo is a brutal task master. He’s smart, he’s a perfectionist, and he keeps you on track and never lets you slack off. I absolutely promise that he’ll budget your time so strictly you’ll never stress out about an assignment again.”

Luhan was quiet for a long time, watching Sehun play with his hands. “Do you really think that will work?”

“Yes. One hundred percent. OhSeHunDred percent, even.”

The reference worked, and Luhan let out a loud snort, bending over to laugh into Sehun’s wrists. “Kyungsoo’s going to be okay with my dumb ass sitting in on your nerd sessions?”

“He puts up with Chanyeol, doesn’t he?”

“Good point.”

Sehun stretched out and squeezed Luhan’s shoulders, offering him an encouraging smile. “Does that help? It feels better when there’s a specific goal to work to, right?”

“Um… yeah,” Luhan said back, a little dazedly, steadying himself on Sehun’s forearms. “Yeah, it does, actually.”

“Trust me. I’m the king of panic attacks,” Sehun laughed. “You’re going to be fine, Luhan. One day at time, okay? Here. Kyungsoo and I are meeting up on Thursday, so you’re not allowed to panic until then, understand? Time doesn’t go nearly as fast as it feels like. Nothing bad will happen between now and Thursday.”

Luhan took a few deep breaths before lifting his chin to look at Sehun again, smiling at him with such affection it made him want to hide in his arms forever. He gulped nervously, offering back a weak smile of his own, not trusting his voice to behave.

“Come here,” Sehun pulled gently on his shoulders and Luhan shuffled closer, breath hitching when Sehun leaned in to kiss him square on the mouth, and it really, _really_ shouldn’t affect him as much as it did.

“Are you drunk?” he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“Am I only allowed to kiss you when we’re drunk?”

“No,” Luhan whispered, willing his heart to calm down. “You can kiss me whenever you want.”

“Cool,” Sehun stated smugly, hauling Luhan into his lap.

“WHOA, HEY,” Luhan protested immediately, eyes widening as he caught his balance on Sehun’s shoulders. “What do you think you’re doing? I’m your senior.”

“Yeah, but you’re also tiny,” Sehun pointed out matter-of-factly. “I’ll hurt my neck if we kiss the other way.”

“Brat,” Luhan muttered, clambering off Sehun’s thighs and shoving his feet under Sehun’s butt, quickly arranging him in his own lap. “But if we sit this way, I can do this,” he smirked before decisively sucking on Sehun’s nipple through his shirt.

Sehun _yelped_ , one hand slamming into the wall beside Luhan’s head, the other clamping down hard on Luhan’s arm, followed by a soft whimper that sent a shiver down Luhan’s entire body. He tilted his head back and smiled up innocently. “You okay? Sorry, should have asked, but I just couldn’t resist.”

“Y-yeah,” Sehun choked out, panting slightly. “Yeah, I just wasn’t… expecting… that.”

“Should I keep going?”

Sehun stared down at him, trying to think past the wet patch on his shirt. They’d never done anything like this before, hands not even straying from the waist and back when they’d drunkenly made out on Jongdae’s couch, and he couldn’t shake the memory of Baekhyun’s conviction that Luhan had a thing for him. But Luhan was smirking up at him lazily, hands resting steady on his hips, nothing Sehun could see in his eyes but curiosity and leftover fatigue.

He nodded once, flushing at Luhan’s radiant grin. He kept his eyes open as Luhan ran hands up his ribs, pushing his shirt along with them, and lowered his mouth to Sehun’s nipple again. Sehun moaned, quickly pulling his hand off the wall to clamp over his own mouth — this house was a lot smaller than Baekhyun’s, and they were far from alone. He cautiously let go of Luhan’s shoulder, pushing Luhan’s bangs off his face, trying to get a better glimpse of what he was doing; he stifled a desperate whimper as Luhan flicked his tongue, fist clamping down on a handful of hair, tugging until Luhan let out a soft noise of pain and he frantically let go with a hastily whispered apology. Trying not to move too much and disturb him, he carefully freed both his hands and took off his shirt so he could fully see Luhan’s pretty nose pressed against his skin. Luhan snickered, sending a shiver down Sehun’s spine, then dropped one hand back down to Sehun’s thigh while the other tweaked at his neglected right nipple. Sehun let out a muffled sob, twitching away from the touch while Luhan’s thumb massaged circles on his hip and sent tingles through his stomach.

Luhan switched his hand and mouth, carefully pushing Sehun back and lowering him to the mattress without breaking contact. Sehun arched his spine at Luhan’s hand slipping into the small of his back; Luhan flicked his nipple out of _nowhere_ and Sehun yelped again, finding himself gazing dazedly up into Luhan’s face as he pulled away to look down at him. Colour was high in his cheeks, lips flushed, eyes wide. He crawled up over Sehun’s body, kissing him hungrily, grabbing a handful of his ass and pulling his leg up around his waist. Sehun sighed against his lips and brought his arms up around his neck, pushing a hand up through Luhan’s hair to rest on the back of his head. Luhan ground his pelvis down against the traitorous bulge in Sehun’s jeans, and Sehun bucked up against him like the horny teen he was, pulling his head back just far enough to gasp a desperate “ _Luhan_ ,” through the kiss.

He could feel Luhan’s dick twitch at the sound of his name, the sensation diminished by layers of fabric, but still distinct. He rolled his hips up again, dragging his thigh against Luhan’s erection, and drew the second “Luhan…” out into a needy whine over his cheek.

“Fuck,” Luhan whispered, sliding his hand off Sehun’s ass only for his fingers to dig almost painfully into his thigh. He cast a gaze down the length of Sehun’s body, then back up again to settle on his parted, swollen lips. “Fuck, look at you.”

“Decent?” Sehun asked, part teasing, part genuinely in need of a compliment to settle his nerves.

“Not even kinda,” Luhan groaned, eyes searching over Sehun’s chest again. “God, Sehun, the things I want to do to you…”

Sehun ran his tongue over his lips, just out of habit, but Luhan’s head immediately jerked to the movement. “Go on, then.”

Luhan sucked in a sharp breath through his nose, adjusting his grip on Sehun’s leg. “Don’t tempt me,” he whispered.

Sehun used the leg hooked over Luhan’s waist to pull him closer, wrapping his arm further around Luhan’s neck. “What if I want to tempt you, though?”

“Jesus Christ.” Luhan swallowed thickly, dropping his forehead against Sehun’s. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not doing this to make me feel better, right?”

Sehun had to fight to not roll his eyes, taking his time to rut against Luhan’s stomach. “Does it _feel_ ,” he hissed sarcastically, “Like I don’t want it?”

“Oh, shit,” Luhan buried his face under Sehun’s jaw. “Fuck, Sehun.”

“If only you would,” Sehun snorted, snapping the waistband of Luhan’s shorts. “Any minute now.”

Luhan muttered a few Chinese syllables that Sehun was pretty sure was just a string of curses and pulled away, slammed closed the laptop that was still teetering precariously on the edge of the mattress beside them and shoved it under the bed. He grabbed Sehun, decisively but not forcefully, and arranged him to sit against the headboard, settling himself on his knees between his thighs. The fingers of his left hand crawled down Sehun’s right arm, palms colliding as Luhan laced their fingers together and kissed him. His right hand went back to Sehun’s leg, kneading up his thigh, fingertips barely dipping into the vicinity of where Sehun really, really needed them to be.

“Luhan, come _on_ ,” he groaned, trying to swivel his hips and get his dick into Luhan’s palm.

“Impatient much?” Luhan snickered, nipping at his lower lip. “I should have known you’d be needy.”

“You’re such an ass,” Sehun whined, feet slipping against the blanket as he desperately bucked up for something, _anything_. “Come on, Luhan, please, please, _please_ ,” he hooked his leg on Luhan’s knee and tried to pull him forward, hands balling in his shirt. “ _Please,_  Luhan, just fucking touch me, please…”

“God, you make this difficult,” Luhan complained, something vaguely hysterical lacing his tone. “I don’t know if I prefer you whimpering or begging.”

“I’ll do both if you just…” Sehun groaned, hiding his face in Luhan’s neck. He didn’t have to finish his sentence before Luhan was fumbling open his pants with unsteady hands, running his thumb carefully over just as much of Sehun’s dick as he could reach through his fly.

“ _Don’t tease_ ,” Sehun mewled into his throat. “Fuck, Luhan, please…”

“You’re gonna kill me,” Luhan grit out, shoving his hands down Sehun’s jeans and trying to slide them off his hips. “Also, these are too tight. You should start wearing sweatpants or skirts or something."

“Please,” Sehun scoffed, wiggling his legs to help. “You _loved_ me in those pleather pants at the contest, don't lie.”

The memory hit Luhan at the same time Sehun’s cock popped out of his underwear, springing to attention, flushed, leaking, and Luhan swore he could feel his brain break.

“You’re wearing too much,” Sehun complained, propping himself up on his elbows. He frowned, giving Luhan’s hand a shake when he didn’t respond, staring at his body silently with his mouth slightly open. “Luhan? Are you okay?”

Luhan swallowed, gave Sehun a desperate, dark-eyed glance, then sank forward and wrapped his lips decisively around Sehun’s cock. Sehun cried out, hands clawing at the sheets while Luhan held his hips down, ran his tongue up the whole length and sucked teasingly at the head before pushing his lips back down until his nose bumped into Sehun’s stomach. Sehun writhed, soft whimpers and gasps escaping his lips while Luhan blew him mercilessly, not allowing him a single second to recollect his thoughts. He settled onto his front, lying down with his legs kicked up behind him and ankles crossed, sliding his hands up the quilt to find Sehun’s and tangle their fingers together. He let Sehun cling onto him to hold himself in reality, making sure not to neglect a single inch of his dick. He had no way to know how high Baekhyun had set the bar, but he wasn’t about to lose to _anyone_. He locked his jaw and set to work, drawing every little moan, every stifled sob out of Sehun that he possibly could, refusing to let up until Sehun was frantically tugging at his hair and yelping at him to stop.

“Don’t want to come?” he asked teasingly, wiping his mouth and smiling as he let Sehun pull him back up to face level.

“Not yet,” Sehun pouted, fingers cold against Luhan’s blush, and kissed him slowly. “Please take your clothes off.”

“But I like you like this,” Luhan snickered. “All bare and open for me.”

“It’s not mutually exclusive!” Sehun protested. “We can both be naked, you know.”

“Is that what you want?”

“What, are you gonna fuck me with your pants on?”

Luhan gulped, screwing his eyes shut and taking a couple of deep breaths while Sehun kept kissing him around the corner of his mouth, his cheeks, his nose, his jaw, fingers crawling under the hem of his shirt and tracing his lower ribs. He felt Sehun shift beneath him, legs spreading further apart, and a weird jerk ran through his body as his cock throbbed at the implication.

“Are you okay? Do you not want to…”

“NO,” Luhan said quickly, eyes snapping open. “No, that’s definitely not it. Just. Every fucking little thing you do is so hot, you have no idea, I’m just trying to not explode.”

Sehun flushed even deeper, sliding Luhan’s shirt over his head and tossing it to the floor. Luhan groaned, pushing his shoulders back while Sehun kissed over his chest. “ _Sehun_ ,” he moaned lowly when Sehun flicked at his nipples, rolling them between his fingers, tugging and tweaking until he was on the verge of sobbing, struggling to hold himself up on trembling arms. Sehun let go, pecking his chin, running his hands down Luhan’s back and over his ass, taking his shorts with him as he went. Luhan manoeuvred himself helpfully, kicking the pants aside, and suddenly Sehun had fingers around his dick, stroking and teasing and gauging his size even with his face buried in his chest. Luhan thrust into his fist shamelessly, sitting back on his heels and wrapping arms around Sehun’s torso to tug him upright.

Sehun fell easily into Luhan’s lap, taking his hand again. “You have a nice dick,” he whispered, kissing Luhan’s palm. “Can’t wait,” he added with a smirk, and promptly took two of Luhan’s fingers into his mouth.

“Holy shitting fuck,” Luhan choked, tearing Sehun’s hand off his cock, worried he wouldn’t be able to hold back with Sehun’s tongue doing what it was doing to his fingers. He pressed down, running his thumb over Sehun’s upper lip, teasing the corner of his mouth with his ring finger. Sehun opened up further, pulling the third finger in without protest, eyes fluttering open to meet his stare shamelessly.

Sehun gave a couple more sucks and pulled back, lightly teasing just the tip of Luhan’s pointer finger with his tongue. “Trying to see how much I can take?”

“Every fucking thing you say,” Luhan stated dazedly, “Is worse than what you said before.”

Sehun beamed, pushing Luhan’s spit-slick hand between his legs. “Fuck me open, Luhan.”

“That wasn’t a _challenge_ ,” Luhan all but sobbed, shoving Sehun in the chest and sending him crashing down into the pillows. “Why are you doing this to me?”

“What am I doing to you? _Oh, Jesus_ ,” Sehun cut himself off with a filthy moan, tipping his head back as Luhan slid a finger into him. Luhan bit his lip, gently playing with just his first knuckle while Sehun happily slumped into the mattress.

“I’ll get some… proper lube…” Luhan announced shakily, wiping his hand on Sehun’s leg and stumbling over to the desk. He rummaged in his stationary drawer for the stash of lube and condoms he hid from the nosy, thieving hands of his housemates, taking a moment to collect himself before he turned back to the bed.

It was a hopeless venture, as it turned out, because the sight of Sehun smiling lazily up at him, back arching as he stretched his obscenely long body over Luhan’s quilt, arms over his head, exposing himself ready for the taking, turned Luhan’s brain right back to mush. He gulped, avoiding Sehun’s gaze in favour of settling between his legs and pushing his thighs apart. Sehun hummed happily, closing his eyes and letting himself relax while Luhan worked on him.

“Do you enjoy this?” Luhan asked, the commercial lubricant letting almost his whole finger in with no argument.

“Mm-hmm,” Sehun’s affirmative melted into a moan, and he angled his hips up to give Luhan better access. “It feels really good, Luhan.”

“As long as that’s the case,” Luhan murmured, watching Sehun’s hole take his finger and trying not to think too hard about how much he just wanted to shove his whole dick in it.

Sehun laughed breathily, running his foot up Luhan’s thigh. “Are you worried about me?”

Luhan braved a glance at his face, crawling up to lie beside him as he worked another finger in. “Don't wanna be the only one having fun, do I?”

“You don’t have to — _aah! —_ worry about that,” Sehun managed to spit out, and Luhan fingered him carefully, experimenting with angles and scissoring and watching with awed intrigue as Sehun’s expression morphed through various stages of pleasure.

“More,” Sehun breathed.

Luhan kissed his throat lightly. “What was that?”

“ _More,_ Luhan, _please_ ,” Sehun begged, slightly louder.

Luhan hesitated for a second, eyeing Sehun’s neck, pretty and long and open. He steeled himself and bit down, sucking a mark into Sehun’s soft skin that Sehun made no move to protest, pressed another finger in and pushed _deep_.

“ _Aah_!” Sehun cried, jerking beneath him, panting desperately. “Yes, Luhan, there, please…”

“There? What’s there?” Luhan bit again onto the other side, “Here?”

Sehun arched off the bed with the most beautiful sound Luhan had ever heard, one hand grabbing his own hair, the other digging into Luhan’s shoulder. “ _Fuck_ , Luhan, oh, _god_.”

He threw his head back, and Luhan took that as an invitation to go to town on his throat. “You are so fucking stunning,” he groaned, leaving a new mark between every word. He’d found his new addiction, and it was _that noise_ — he fucked his hand into Sehun’s body, dragging along the spot that made Sehun scream like that every time he withdrew, until Sehun was practically sobbing and scrabbling at his wrist to make him stop. He pulled out in surrender, holding onto Sehun’s hip and allowing him a moment to catch his breath. Sehun placed a hand on his chest, every exhalation coming out as a desperate moan until he finally collected himself enough to push Luhan onto his back. 

“You think you’re all that?” he tried to jeer, holding Luhan down with two hands on his shoulders, but the tremor in his voice ruined the effect.

“Not until I heard you wail like that,” Luhan grinned back, and Sehun let out a mirthful huff of defeat. “My housemates have definitely heard what we’re up to by now.”

“That’s fine,” Sehun shrugged, reaching over to grab the condom. He tore it open with a smirk, keeping his eyes fixed on Luhan’s dick as he rolled it on. “You can brag to them later about how good you are. Don’t let it go to your head though,” he continued quickly, positioning himself above Luhan’s hips and carefully sliding down onto his cock.

“Sehun,” Luhan moaned, biting his lip; Sehun took him by the wrists and placed his hands on his hips, bracing himself on Luhan’s forearms.

“Don’t think I forgot your comments about my thighs at dance practice,” Sehun warned, slowly starting to ride. “You just stay there and let me get you off.”

If Luhan had any mind left at that point, he lost it immediately, whining softly at how fucking _good_ Sehun felt. He was definitely not going to last like this.

“You’re so pretty,” Sehun smiled — Luhan would have protested, but the words left his mouth less as words and more as an unintelligible garble of bliss that had heat rushing to his cheeks in embarrassment. Sehun laughed once, but was hardly in a position to mock anything, every breath a sordid groan as he started to pick up speed.

Luhan came first, maybe too quickly, but he didn’t give a single shit as he dug his nails into Sehun’s hips and buried himself so deep up his ass he heard him choke on his soft scream. He was scrabbling for Sehun’s shoulders even before the world had stopped spinning, gathering him into his chest and reaching down with numb fingers to jack at Sehun’s cock until he felt heavy spurts of cum dripping onto his stomach.

Sehun collapsed beside him; he was too hot, fire running beneath his skin, to press himself to the line of Luhan’s body, but he managed to find Luhan’s hand and hook a finger around one knuckle. The buzzing in his ears faded to the sound of Luhan slowly catching his breath, chest heaving.

He shifted just the tiniest bit closer, grateful for the coolness of the sheets. He pressed his nose to Luhan’s arm, feeling Luhan’s fist close around his fingers as he let himself drift off into unconsciousness.

 

*

 

Luhan rubbed his face on Sehun’s bare chest, clinging a little tighter to his waist, not quite ready to let go, not quite ready to go back to living. Sehun, at least, appeared to feel the same, tracing lines up and down his spine, humming softly in a way that helped Luhan’s frazzled brain from returning to a fully-functional state.

“How are you feeling?”

“Off-center,” Luhan admitted after a moment of considering the question. “But really good.”

Sehun went back to humming, easing strands of Luhan’s hair out from between his forehead and his own chest. “There’s nothing wrong with us,” he murmured softly. “We’re not wrong, or disgusting, or disrespectful for being how we are.”

Luhan sighed, turning his head a little bit so he could breathe.

“We have the right to live how we want,” Sehun continued, oblivious to the real root of Luhan’s concern. “You don’t have to live in a monogamous, loving relationship in order to have the right to exist. We’re allowed to have sex for fun. We’re allowed to have it not mean anything. We’re allowed to do whatever we want and it doesn’t make us worth less as human beings.”

“I know,” Luhan whispered, screwing his eyes shut. _It doesn’t mean anything,_ he realized desolately, _it’s just sex_.

“You helped me be happy with myself, Luhan,” Sehun confessed softly. “I’m glad I have you.”

 _Don’t fucking ruin this, Luhan, you piece of shit_ , Luhan’s brain scolded him. _You greedy fuckface. Just take what you have_.

So Luhan said nothing, and appeased himself with fingers pressing into the small of Sehun’s back as he kissed him.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would leave an a/n and reply to comments but i'm drunk as fu c k righ t now sorry i'll do that tomorrow lol


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Yixing, it’s me—”
> 
> “ _Ask him out, Luhan, you stupid fucking soggy jelly cup,_ ” Yixing screeched down the line, and immediately hung up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: G

 

 

 

Sehun took a deep breath, zipping his jacket right up to his chin before thrusting his hands into his pockets and bracing himself to go down and eat dinner with his family.

He was going to _kill_ Luhan.

 

*

 

“Holy shit,” Chanyeol blurt out as soon as he opened the door, clamping a hand over his mouth. “Whoops. Uh. Sehun. Have you seen your—”

“Yes,” Sehun acknowledged shortly, glaring daggers as he stepped into Kyungsoo’s apartment and kicked off his shoes.

“Oh my god, Sehun,” Tao gasped as he turned to look at him.

“Another word and you’re going on my hit list too,” Sehun snapped, hunching his shoulders defensively. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“And, uh,” Kyungsoo asked, voice trembling with mirth. “Who, um, would be at the top of that hit list, may I ask?”

“You may not.”

“Is it Luhan?”

“Please tell me it’s Luhan.”

“I’m _going home_.”

“ _Noooooo_ , Sehun, come back, we love you!”

Sehun cautiously turned around, letting Chanyeol pull him over to the couch and sit him down. A mistake, he realized almost immediately, as all three of them jumped to pile on top of him, Tao sitting on his lap to pin his legs down, Chanyeol hugging his waist to hold him still and trap his arms, and Kyungsoo shoving himself into the whole mess to inspect the forest of hickeys on his neck.

“I can’t believe you let him do that to you,” Chanyeol said in awe.

“I hate all of you from the very depths of my soul.”

“No you don’t.”

“I really, really do.”

 

*

 

“Chen, affection me.”

“What did you do this time.”

“I resent the implication—”

“Okay, no implications. What did you fuck up this time, Luhan?”

Luhan pouted, kicking from where he lay face down on Jongdae’s bed. “I came here for support.”

“What am I, an affection whore? You tell me what you did and I’ll tell you if I have time to deal with your shit.”

“You are so rude, you know that?”

“Then why are you here?”

Luhan sighed, hugging Jongdae’s pillow and glaring deeply at his sock. “I had sex with Sehun.”

“Did he reject you?”

“No, I—”

“Are you now dating?”

“No, we—”

“Nope. No time for you.” Jongdae ripped his pillow out of Luhan’s arms, pushing him off the bed and shoving him towards the door. “Go ask him out right now and don’t talk to me again until you do.”

“Jongdae, what the _fuck_!”

“LALALA, DON’T WANNA HEAR IT,” Jongdae yelled, continuing to nudge Luhan down the hall, down the stairs, and out the front door. “When you stop being a baby, we can talk.”

“YOU ARE THE WORST FRIEND EVER,” Luhan screeched as Jongdae slammed the door in his face.

 

*

 

“Sehun? It’s Minseok.”

“Oh, hey. What’s up? Is everything okay?”

“Debatable. Has he asked you yet?”

Sehun swallowed, adjusting his grip on his phone. “Has who asked me wh—?”

“Sehun, please don’t play dumb with me.” On the other end of the line, Minseok pinched his nose. “He’s already driving me crazy.”

“No,” Sehun sighed, slumping in his seat. “He hasn’t asked me yet.”

 

*

 

“Oh, look, the vampire has arrived,” Kyungsoo said by way of greeting as Luhan approached him and Sehun, sitting at one of the desks in their local community library.

“Vampire?” Luhan said in confusion, and Sehun silently unwrapped his scarf. “Oh, my god.”

“These are faded,” Sehun noted flatly.

“I am so sorry.”

“So you _were_ the one who did it,” Kyungsoo hummed, sounding entirely too satisfied, and Luhan froze in horror, eyes wide, before Kyungsoo rolled his own eyes and flapped a hand. “I’m just kidding, I knew it was you.”

“Who else would it be?” Sehun muttered, and Luhan pretended to not be pleased.

“Shall we physics?” Kyungsoo waved at Luhan to open up his bag, and Luhan sighed, miserably obeying and dumping his textbooks onto the table. “Let’s get started. Two weeks before school starts, we can do this!”

“Okay,” Luhan agreed dejectedly.

 

*

 

“Yixing, it’s me—”

“ _Ask him out, Luhan, you stupid fucking soggy jelly cup_ ,” Yixing screeched down the line, and immediately hung up.

 

*

 

The first day of Luhan’s final term finally arrived. He let himself be washed into the school building with the flow of students all streaming from the bus stop to the western entrance, up the corridor, past the lockers, and into class just in time for the bell to ring.

One more term. If he could just survive this, work hard, and make it through the university entrance exams, he might just be able to pull through this year and go back to China with confidence.

The thought of China didn’t feel like home so much these days.

He sat down at his usual desk, pulled out all his textbooks and pencil case, and flipped his workbook open past all of the notes he’d made through studying with Kyungsoo, and smoothed down the first clean page.

Almost clean.

 _Go, go, Lu-lu-han!_ A little cartoon face in the top left corner cheered, in Sehun’s distinctly terrible handwriting, tiny fists raised above its head. Luhan ran his thumb over it, lower lip jutting out as he struggled not to coo over his fucking notebook right there in the middle of class. And as the teacher began speaking, taking barely two seconds to welcome them back before diving right into the lesson, Luhan set his jaw and got to work.

 

 

 

“Fuck me right up the ass,” one of his classmates groaned from somewhere behind him as they packed up at the end of the period, “First day back and I’m already screwed five ways to Sunday. Did you understand _any_ of that?”

But as Luhan quickly compared today’s notes from the ones he’d made at the library with Sehun and Kyungsoo the past week, he realized that yes — yes, he did.

 

*

 

“Luhan!”

Luhan turned around to see Sehun jogging towards him, smiling obliviously, waving to get his attention.

“I’ve been looking for you! Are you going to the oval? Let’s have lunch together today.”

Luhan didn’t say anything right away, taking deep, silent breaths as he gazed up into Sehun’s face, feeling strangely calm. Maybe he was just overtired from waking up too early, but his nerves were nowhere near as bad as the last times he’d considered asking him out, manifesting as just a slow ache in his chest.

Sehun’s smile faltered. “Are you okay?”

“Would you date me?”

The words sounded so distant to Luhan’s ears, he wasn’t even sure that he was the one to say them.

“What?”

It was an escape, a way out — Luhan could back down. He could just say something like ‘nothing’ or ‘don’t worry about it’. But he didn’t want to, not anymore.

“If I asked you out. Would you date me?”

Sehun blinked, and to Luhan the moment felt like an eternity, before he lay his thumb along his jaw and tapped a finger against his slightly twitching lips. “Hmm,” he hummed thoughtfully. “In this hypothetical situation, if I _have_ to predict, I have to guess I would probably say yes.”

Luhan could feel the earth shift beneath his feet. “Really?” he whispered.

“But of course,” Sehun amended, slinging his arm over Luhan’s shoulders and starting to walk in the direction of the oval, “You would have to man up and actually ask me. Otherwise I can’t know for sure.”

“I’m a man,” Luhan retorted dazedly, purely on instinct, unable to think of much past the weight of Sehun’s arm.

Sehun snorted. “Yes, you’re being very manly.”

Luhan frowned suddenly, spinning to push Sehun out of the path of the other students rushing to lunch, against the wall. “Sehun.”

“You’re really cute, you know that?” Sehun interrupted him, a cheeky grin stretching his lips, and Luhan got distracted _again_.

“I’m not cute,” he said slowly, eyes fixated on Sehun’s lips. _Why was his brain not working_?

Sehun cleared his throat after a moment of silence too long. “Luhan.”

“Yes?”

Sehun leaned forward slightly and grinned. “Before I do it myself and damage your manly pride… I think you should kiss me.”

Luhan didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed Sehun’s face and brought their lips together, heavy and bruising, fingers sliding around to the back of Sehun’s head to hold him in place and protect his skull from the unforgiving hardness of the wall behind him, melting into the arms that Sehun wrapped around his waist.

“Luhan,” Sehun murmured, and Luhan could feel a smirk manifesting on the little shit’s face.

“I know,” he grumbled back, breaking away for half-seconds at a time to get the syllables out. “I know, just give me… Give me one second.”

“Don’t take too long,” Sehun teased, running a thumb over Luhan’s cheek.

Luhan sighed, pulling away just far enough to speak, staying close enough to touch his nose to Sehun’s. “Sehun.”

“Yes, Luhan.”

“Will you go out with me?”

Sehun was too happy to continue the teasing. “Yes,” he snickered, pulling Luhan even closer. “Yes, of course I will, you fucking idiot.”

Luhan couldn’t be bothered to take offense, kissing him again, and again, and again until Sehun pushed his face back, giggling uncontrollably, tapping him on the forehead. “Come on, Luhan, can we eat? I’m hungry. I already said yes, you’ve proved your dominance, let’s go.”

Luhan frowned, not quite ready to let go. “When I met you, you were the shyest, timidest, quietest little adorable muffin,” he complained. “What happened? You would never have tormented me about my manliness back then.” He sighed and rearranged his arms around Sehun’s neck. “You’ve been spoiled.”

Sehun just laughed. “Yes, by you. But you know I only do it because I love you, Lu.”

“Huh.” Luhan rolled his eyes and nibbled at Sehun’s jaw.

Sehun pushed him away, pouting. “You don’t love me too?”

“Of course, I adore you. But don’t let it go to your head, you arrogant brat.”

“I’m a brat?”

“Yes.” Luhan said decisively.

Sehun shrugged. “Well, if you already think so…” he left his sentence unfinished as he slid his arms down to Luhan’s thighs and picked him up, slinging him over his shoulder. Happiness filling him ready to burst, he ran with him down the corridor in the direction of the oval, and their friends, and the whole future in front of them, cackling manically through Luhan’s shrieks and curses.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would leave an extensive end-of-the-fic note HOWEVER!!! I just finished the first full draft of the epilogue so that will be out ON TIME, in TWENTY-FOUR HOURS, once I've proofread and touched it up, I'm so excited guys I hope you like it <3


	25. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Jongin chuckled, turning back to the sky. “Fuck you and your dumbass lovestruck face.”_
> 
> _“I’m your best friend. Suck it up.”_
> 
> _“You suck it up.”_
> 
> _“My sucking skills are unparalleled, I’ll have you know.”_
> 
> _“GOD,” Jongin groaned, “On top of the list of things I didn’t need to know.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating for chapter: M

 

 

 

“I don’t hate you.”

Jongin nearly jumped out of his skin at the greeting-free statement coming from beside his shoulder and he gasped, clutching at his heart. “Fuck, you scared me. What?”

“I said I don’t hate you,” Kyungsoo repeated, both hands wrapped around the straps of his backpack. “I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

“Um,” Jongin shuffled nervously, adjusting his own bag on his shoulder. “Where is this coming from?”

“Sehun and Luhan,” Kyungsoo confessed, lowering his gaze to the floor. “I know a lot of your friends are telling you to ask me out now that they’re together.”

Jongin let out an almost guilty laugh, a blush flooding his face. “I, uh,”

“I don’t hate you,” Kyungsoo repeated for the third time, “But… please don’t.”

Jongin felt his stomach twist into at least five knots. “Kyungsoo…”

He lost his train of thought immediately as Kyungsoo just stared up at him silently with those big eyes, the ones he admired from afar, the ones that haunted his daydreams. He wanted to cup his face and run his thumbs along them, watch them flutter shut under his touch. His lips looked so soft, pulling slightly tight as he swallowed, and Jongin had never wanted to kiss someone more.

Kyungsoo caught Jongin’s gaze flicking to his mouth and he drew in a slow breath, hoping beyond hope that Jongin wouldn’t touch him. This could get messy too quickly. It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought about it. It wasn’t that he was stubborn. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t bring himself to like Jongin, not in the way he wanted. He felt nothing but reluctant tolerance towards him when he looked at him, when he thought about him, when they spoke.

“I don’t know what your impressions of me are,” he said carefully, “But I can guarantee they’re not the real me. I know you have a crush but I don’t think you really want to date _me_.”

Jongin swallowed, heart pounding at the concern twisting Kyungsoo’s eyebrows. “I know there’s more to you than meets the eye,” he said helplessly, “I don’t think I know everything about you, Kyungsoo. I just… want to.” Kyungsoo worried his lip with his teeth, but didn’t respond immediately, so Jongin continued. “Can I at least try?”

“Jongin, no.” Kyungsoo’s voice was so soft and gentle that Jongin thought he probably would have preferred he just laugh at him and walk away. He could deal with being insulted. He wasn’t sure he could deal with being pitied. “It’s not fair on either of us. I don’t want to hurt you, but it’s… it’s now or later.”

Jongin took a step closer; Kyungsoo didn’t back away, but the sudden tension in his body was so abrupt that Jongin froze. “Soo, please,” he whispered desperately. “I would be good to you, I would be loyal to you, I would… I’d be anything you want, please…” he snapped his mouth shut, swallowing his babbling. He was _begging_. Kim Jongin did not _beg_.

“Would you be just a friend?” Kyungsoo sighed. Jongin closed his eyes, lips tightening in defeat as he dragged a hand through his hair. “That’s the thing, Jongin. I don’t want anything. I know you like me, and I’ve thought about it, but I don’t like you that way. I’ve tried! But I wouldn’t know _how_ to like you. I’ve never had a crush, not even on a celebrity or a fictional character, and it’s not that I’m scared or embarrassed, I’m just _not curious_. I don’t have any desire to know how it feels. And I don’t feel anything for you… I’m sorry.”

Jongin took a few deep breaths, trying to ensure he could speak evenly. He didn’t need to humiliate himself any more than he already had. “Okay,” he whispered finally, his voice barely audible.

“I am sorry, Jongin.”

“Yeah.” Jongin cleared his throat, shrugging his shoulders and looking around at the walls, the ceiling, anywhere but at Kyungsoo. “It just. Kind of sucks that you are, you know? If you hated me, that would be… I could… but now… you do like me. Just not…” _Not enough_.

Kyungsoo sighed again, pointing awkwardly over his shoulder. “Um… I have to… I have to go…”

“Yeah, yeah.” Jongin quickly hitched a weak smile onto his face and waved at him to leave. “I’ll see you at Jongdae’s on Friday.”

“Oh… um… yeah.”

Kyungsoo continued to hesitate, awkwardly taking a half-step backwards. Jongin pulled his smile a notch wider. “It’s cool, really. I’ll be fine. Go catch your bus.”

Kyungsoo pulled a face, taking another step back. “I really gotta…”

“I know, I know. It’s okay, go.”

Kyungsoo finally turned, hurrying down the hall.

He looked back once, but Jongin had already left.

 

*

 

“You two are, if anything, even grosser than usual,” Tao commented without bite, leaning his head on his hand as he eyed Sehun leaning back against Luhan’s chest. “The sappiness levels in this room are through the roof.”

“Hey,” Chanyeol protested, also tangled with his boyfriend, “You were rooting for them too, don’t pretend you weren’t gushing more than any of us.”

“I don’t know,” Jongdae mused, absently playing with Yixing’s fingers as he surveyed the sprawling map of Carcassonne laid out on the games table. “It doesn’t look to me like too much has changed, honestly.”

Luhan just smiled sleepily, condensation from his beer dripping onto Sehun’s hair as he drank. Sehun wrinkled his nose, reaching up to wipe his scalp clean and “accidentally” knocking Luhan’s chin. Luhan choked, hastily holding his can out to the side, face contorting in pain as he forcibly swallowed the bubbles down. “Fuck,” he coughed, tapping Sehun’s shoulder reproachfully. “Do you want me to spit on you? Jesus.”

Sehun grinned wickedly, raising an eyebrow as he tilted his head back to look at him. “Wouldn’t be the worst thing you’ve spat on me.”

The reaction was immediate and significant. Tao let out the most ear-splitting shriek Sehun had heard from him yet, Baekhyun and Jongdae burst out laughing, Chanyeol, Yifan and Minseok let out varying yells and groans of disgust, and Jongin pretended to dry heave, draping himself dramatically over the arm of the sofa. Even Kyungsoo sent him a pained expression across the room before he dragged a hand over his eyes.

“That was a good one,” Luhan noted with satisfaction, slapping his hand into the palm Sehun held over his shoulder for a high-five.

Tao let out a final yelp of betrayal, slinging a pillow solidly into the back of Luhan’s head. “Do we _need_ to know?” he huffed in exasperation, “Like, _must_ we? Really?”

“Yes,” Jongdae said immediately, tilting his head towards him with wide eyes and a broad grin. “Yes, we absolutely do.”

“Tao,” Baekhyun snickered, “Why are you so upset about it? Would you feel better if he swallowed?”

“NO I WOULD NOT _,”_ Tao howled, driving the heels of his hands into his eyes. “I would feel better if I never have to think about Sehun’s dick ever in my life.”

“What I want to know is _where_ he spat it, though,” Jongdae mused, finally placing his tile and nudging Kyungsoo to take his turn.

“ _Why_ ,” Tao spluttered desolately, torn between hiding his face in Kyungsoo’s back and staying as far away from Jongdae as possible.

“Data collection and research,” Jongdae chirped happily. Yixing rolled his eyes.

“Excuse,” Sehun deadpanned, shifting to settle further between Luhan’s thighs.

“Don’t play coy, Sehun,” Jongdae snorted. “Everyone knows you two are gonna fuck me. It’s just a matter of _when_.”

Kris nodded, raising a hand. “I’m currently taking bets, for anyone who wants to participate.”

Sehun started to pout, but upon realizing the truth of the situation, sighed, shrugged, and smiled in defeat. “What estimates have you got so far, Yifan?”

Kris stuck out his tongue. “I’m not telling you. You don’t get to throw the odds.”

“Not even a range?” Sehun laughed, shaking his head at Kris resolutely folding his arms and pressing his lips together.

“Can we please stop?” Tao pleaded, “God, I would rather hear about _Chanyeol’s_ sex life than Sehun’s. I am begging.”

“That’s because Chanyeol doesn’t have one,” Sehun snorted, sniggering gracelessly at the deep flush that worked its way up Chanyeol’s face as his hand jittered on Baekhyun’s shoulder.

“Wait,” Jongdae frowned, turning to stare at Baekhyun. “You two aren’t fucking?”

Baekhyun smiled and shrugged, ruffling Chanyeol’s hair. “Not yet.”

“You— really?” Minseok leaned over Kris to see them better. “ _Really_?”

Chanyeol looked supremely uncomfortable all of a sudden, squirming as he desperately tried to defend himself. “It’s— I— um— I don’t—,” he stammered helplessly before burying his face in his hands and knocking his glasses to the floor.

Baekhyun calmly picked them up and placed them on the coffee table while Minseok, Kris, Jongdae, Yixing and Sehun all let out an “Oh, noooooo, Chanyeol,” in almost eerie unison.

“No, don’t be embarrassed,” Kris cooed, an arm around Minseok’s shoulders. “We don’t want to make you feel bad, Chanyeol, we’re just surprised.”

“Because of me?” Baekhyun raised an eyebrow, gathering Chanyeol’s head in both arms while Chanyeol hid in his chest. It was almost a dare, smirk tinted defensive.

Kris met his gaze evenly. “Yes.”

“I’m a slut, not a rapist,” Baekhyun said smoothly, and that did have Kris flinching.

“Well you don’t have to say it like that,” he muttered, twisting his hands.

There was a moment of silence where nobody knew exactly what to say, but Chanyeol, face mushed into Baekhyun’s shirt, didn’t notice. He let out a muffled, pitiful moan while Baekhyun kissed the top of his head.

“Can we pick on someone else now?” he whined, lightening the mood as Yixing laughed and flicked his eyebrows at Jongdae. Jongdae beamed back, taking his hand and clearing his throat.

“Well there is some other news,” he announced, clambering off his knees and onto the couch so he could pull Yixing’s hands into his lap.

“Yixing is pregnant!” Luhan guessed excitedly, wiggling in his seat.

“Well, no, not quite.” Jongdae kissed Yixing’s knuckles. “But exciting nonetheless.”

“Oh shit, no way! Already?” Minseok raised his eyebrows.

Sehun frowned. “Wait, what happened?”

“Yixing moved in!” Jongdae cheered, raising his arms above his head with a radiant grin.

“Oh, that was ninja,” Kris commented while Sehun’s jaw fell open in shock.

“Yeah, we got most of it done last weekend,” Yixing dimpled prettily while Jongdae settled back and leaned on his shoulder. “That’s why I’ve been so tired this week, I’ve been unpacking and settling in and everything.”

“You should’ve told us before!” Luhan protested, “We could have helped!”

“WAIT,” Sehun cried, sitting up straight. “Why did Yixing move in here?”

“Because Jongdae’s parents love me just that much,” Yixing laughed. “Actually, I’ve been meaning to move in for ages, but my lease just finished at my other place, so it’s time.”

“Congratulations,” Chanyeol beamed, pulling his head out of Baekhyun and putting his glasses back on. “That’s a big step! How long have you two been together, again?”

“Four years,” Jongdae smiled as Yixing lightly poked his nose. “He’ll save money, too, my parents aren’t gonna charge rent.” He sounded strangely smug, grinning and pressing tiny kisses to each of Yixing’s dimples.

“Damn, can I move in too?” Luhan snorted.

“Sorry, this is a family discount,” Jongdae chuckled.

Baekhyun frowned, looking almost betrayed. “Hold on. Jongdae, your parents know about you two?”

Jongdae turned to him very slowly, and a strange quiet settled over the room. “You… you didn’t know?”

Baekhyun let out a strange laugh. “Why would I know? We weren’t allowed to talk since six years ago.”

“Yeah,” said Jongdae carefully, “But like… that’s why.”

“What do you mean?”

“I…” Jongdae kept his eyes steady on Baekhyun, decisively avoiding the badly concealed curiosity on everyone else’s faces. “Our moms fought, remember? Mine didn’t want me hanging out with homophobes, and yours, um… yours didn’t want you hanging out with faggot supporters.”

There were a few seconds of heavy silence while Baekhyun swallowed. “Oh,” he said eventually, smiling weakly. “Joke’s on her, I guess.”

“I mean,” Jongdae said softly, “That’s what my mom told me.”

“No,” Baekhyun shrugged, knuckles white around Chanyeol’s hand. “That sounds like exactly what she’d do. Makes sense.”

“I’m—”

“Kim Jongdae,” Baekhyun interrupted firmly, “If you apologize to me for having loving parents I will personally punch you in the fucking face.”

Yixing let out an awkward half-cough while Minseok, Kris and Luhan shifted just so slightly, and Sehun nosed into Luhan’s cheek, sensing the weight of sadder stories in the sculpted blankness of Luhan’s expression.

“Understood.” Jongdae smiled, kissing Yixing’s hand once more and extracting himself from the couch. “I think we all need some more alcohol.” He turned to Kyungsoo, raising his eyebrows. “Wanna come help me cart some up?”

Kyungsoo started, blinking once before nodding slowly. “Okay, yeah, sure.”

Luhan watched them leave, whipping his head around to Jongin as soon as they started down the stairs. “So, Kyungsoo,” he began, smirking cheekily.

“No.” Jongin sent him a glare full of warning and defiance. “Haven’t we had enough awkward moments tonight?”

Luhan wilted immediately, looking stricken.

“You already asked?” asked Sehun softly, brow creasing in concern.

“As if he didn’t already tell you about it.”

“No, he didn’t.” Sehun denied gently, glancing over at Chanyeol and Tao. “You?”

Chanyeol shook his head. Tao nodded, staring at his hands.

Jongin stood up, jaw tight. “Come have a smoke with me,” he said, looking only at Sehun, who squeezed Luhan’s hand once before removing himself and clambering off the couch. Everyone else was silent as they left, and Sehun carefully placed his hand on Jongin’s shoulder as he grabbed his jacket and followed him from the room.

Luhan grabbed a cushion and shoved his face into it, groaning guiltily.

“Luhan…” Kris began.

Luhan growled. “I don’t want to hear it from _you_ ,” he snapped, kicking his legs like a child.

Minseok leaned his head against the back of the couch, slinging his legs over Yifan’s lap and tucking his toes under Tao’s thighs. “Wow,” he sighed. “This is a heavy night.”

“A lot of stuff’s going on,” Yixing sighed, collecting empty bottles and making a little pile in the corner. “Everyone’s stressed. The year is coming to an end.”

Chanyeol turned to Tao. “How come he only told you?”

Tao pulled a face. “I think he didn’t want to bother you and Sehun, what with you being all happy and couple-y right now. And especially since Sehun is so close with Jongin. He doesn’t want you to feel guilty for being happy, so don’t make a big deal about it.”

Chanyeol pouted, glaring at his knees while Jongdae and Kyungsoo wandered back in with fresh cases.

“Where’d the kids go?” Jongdae nodded at where Jongin and Sehun had been sitting, dumping the case on the floor.

“Roof,” Kris said shortly.

Jongdae looked around slowly at the circle of tense faces, settling finally on Luhan. “And chain smoker extraordinaire here is not with them because…?”

“Jongin just wanted to speak with Sehun about something,” Yixing said calmly, pulling Jongdae back to his seat. Kyungsoo helped himself to beer, settling down as well, trying to pretend he was fine.

It was quiet.

Very quiet.

Kyungsoo started to panic.

“I won’t apologize,” he blurted out, heart pounding, but the tone of his voice made him sound calm.

“As well you shouldn’t,” Minseok assured him easily. “There’s nothing to apologize for. If you don’t want to date him, you shouldn’t feel like you have to.”

Jongdae finally caught on, wondering if Kyungsoo would mind him touching his shoulder and ultimately deciding against it. “Just…” he started, still choosing his words when Kyungsoo turned to look at him. “I hope… I hope neither of you feel like you’re not welcome here,” he pursed his lips and waved a hand at Chanyeol and Tao. “We’ve kind of stolen your friends, and Jongin only has us, so… I know you’re in a tough position. But we all like you both, so just because we know Jongin better than you, don’t feel like you should stay away, you know?”

Kyungsoo took a breath, letting it out slowly without looking away. His expression was unreadable, and Jongdae let out a weak laugh. “It’s very hard to tell what you’re thinking.”

“Yes. So I’ve been told.” Kyungsoo blinked. “But I would like.” He whipped his head around to his hands when the tab of the can he’d been toying with snapped off with a loud crack. “I would like to. Keep coming here.”

“Of course,” Jongdae smiled prettily. “Whenever you want, Kyungsoo.”

 

*

 

“Give us a hit.”

Jongin’s eyebrows almost disappeared into his hairline. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah, let me see what all the fuss is about.”

“Look at you, succumbing to peer pressure.” Jongin handed over his cigarette, snorting at the tentative way Sehun fumbled at the filter. “Suck it into your mouth, then breathe into your lungs. And you don’t need to use your tongue. Don’t be that guy who slobbers all over the joint.”

“Is this a joint?” Sehun turned to him, eyes wide.

“Oh my god no, I was just making a point,” Jongin rolled his eyes. “Don’t you dare tell anyone I said this, but I’m terrible at drugs. You would definitely know if I was high."

Sehun let out a mirthful huff, sticking the end of the cigarette between his lips and following Jongin’s instructions.

Well, he tried to. At step two, the taste of burning paper and heavy smoke filled his mouth and he lost control halfway through the actual inhalation, spluttering helplessly as his eyes began to water. He reached blindly to where Jongin was cackling remorselessly at him, weakly punching at his shoulder. “You ass.”

“You asked!” Jongin whined, holding his hand out to fend off Sehun’s attack. “Are you okay? You fucking baby.”

“That is _revolting_ ,” Sehun grumbled, glad he brought his cider with him, taking deep gulps to wash the taste from his mouth. “God, how do people get addicted to _that_?”

“Wish I didn’t know,” Jongin shrugged, smiling sadly, settling back against the shingles and taking a drag. “Thanks for keeping the filter dry, in any case.”

“You’re fucking welcome,” Sehun rolled his eyes. “So, did you want to speak to me? Or did you just not want them all looking at you?”

Jongin paused, staring straight out at the night sky as the smoke swirled around his head and lingered in his hair. “I guess I wanted to talk to you,” he admitted softly.

Sehun crossed his legs and waited, taking little sips of his drink.

Jongin sighed, playing with his own bottle top. “I’m sorry I kissed you.”

“Hey, man,” Sehun laughed gently. “That was forever ago. Don’t even worry about it.”

Jongin rubbed his eyes. “It just… it just fucking sucks. I didn’t even ask him out. He came to reject me pre-emptively.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Like it fucking _hurt_ , man. And it was _embarrassing_. I felt like absolute shit.” He tucked his free hand under his elbow, cigarette hovering near his mouth. “Then I started thinking about you. And I haven’t stopped thinking about you since. Is this how you felt when I told you I liked him?” he wasn’t expecting an answer, and Sehun didn’t provide one. “I thought about how I would feel if he kissed me while I knew full well he didn’t like me. And I thought about how much it must have taken you to push me away. I’m sorry, Sehun.” He took a breath. “As much as it sucked for him to come and tell me flat out he wasn’t interested, at least he made sure not to lead me on.”

“Jongin, that’s not—”

“You know what’s the _worst_ thing, though?” Jongin interrupted, “What’s really fucked up? I was offended when you came and told me “no hard feelings”. I thought I had nothing to apologize for, like it wasn’t _my_ fault you liked me.” He laughed bitterly. “Could you tell? I was so fucking righteous. I couldn’t even begin to fathom how much you must be hurting. And then when we started talking again…” he groaned. “I loved dragging you back into my life. I thought it was _funny_ how my best friend had a crush on me, it was like power play and a constant self-confidence boost all in one. And taunting Luhan about it was just a bonus.”

Sehun cleared his throat as Jongin paused for a moment, taking a few deep puffs of his cigarette. “I… I kind of knew that part.”

“What part?”

“You liked how I liked you. But it’s fine. I knew I could get over it by myself. We all want to feel wanted, I don’t blame you for that.” He smiled wryly. “It’s not like you could completely cut me out if you really wanted a chance with him.”

“That’s—” Jongin shook his head. “I’m so sorry, Sehun.”

“It’s fine.” Sehun took another sip. “No harm done. You’ll be fine too. You’ll fall for someone who actually likes you, and everything will work out.”

Jongin kind of felt that Sehun was missing the point. He shouldn’t be let off the hook so easily, he should be groveling more. On the other hand, he supposed Sehun was just like that. “Luhan really likes you,” he said out loud.

Sehun smiled suddenly, wiggling happily as he stared down at his knees. “Hmm.”

“At a base level, he respected you enough to be scared you’d say no,” Jongin smiled gently. “He cares about you a lot, and he genuinely wants to take care of you. I’m happy for you. Really happy.”

“Yeah.” Sehun beamed over at him. “Me too.”

Jongin chuckled, turning back to the sky. “Fuck you and your dumbass lovestruck face.”

“I’m your best friend. Suck it up.”

“You suck it up.”

“My sucking skills are unparalleled, I’ll have you know.”

“GOD,” Jongin groaned, “On top of the list of things I didn’t need to know.”

“Fun fact, Luhan is the only one who spits.”

“Sehun _please_ shut the _fuck_ up—”

“Hey,” Sehun flicked his eyebrows. “You teased Luhan for being too much of a pussy to ask me out, so now you get to hear all the juicy details of our _fantastic_ sex life.”

“Nope.” Jongin laughed, stubbing out his cigarette and tossing the butt into Jongdae’s ashtray. “I’m sorry, but not that sorry. Come on, I’m out of beer.”

Sehun cackled, crawling to the window after him. “You know I have hickeys on my ass?”

“I’m going to pretend I never heard that.”

 

*

 

Things calmed down a little when they returned, everyone actually focusing on playing the game for once, although when it wasn’t his turn, Sehun caught Luhan gazing at him out of the corner of his eye, flushing and turning quickly back to the table when he stared back. Sehun snickered, lacing their fingers together under the table like it was a secret. Minseok beat them all by a huge margin, earning himself the right to choose where to order food from, and Jongdae turned up the music as he ducked out of the room to make the call.

Sehun crawled back onto the couch with Luhan, watching in amusement as Chanyeol pulled Kris up to dance, until he was distracted by Luhan’s teeth on his throat.

“Needy much?” he teased, even though his head was already tilting of its own accord to give Luhan better access.

“You’re enabling me,” Luhan retorted, pulling down at the collar of Sehun’s shirt to get at his collarbone. “And I’m not the one who begs.”

“We’ll see about that,” Sehun smirked, shivering at Luhan’s soft moan, and the hands that landed on his hips while Luhan shamelessly marked him right there in front of _everyone_.

“Oi,” Jongdae called, “No fucking on my couch, thanks.”

Luhan pulled away, raising one eyebrow. “Since when?” he demanded loudly, hands slipping into Sehun’s back pockets.

“Since your gay ass started feeling up your boyfriend in front of the _kids_ ,” Jongdae pointed to where Tao was hiding in Yixing’s shoulder and crying dramatically in Mandarin. “Keep it PG, hornballs.”

“If this party is PG your whole existence should be pixelated!” Luhan yelled, but begrudgingly turned Sehun around so he could lie back against his chest like before. Sehun smirked, pretending to get comfortable while he dragged his ass against Luhan’s boner and received a vicious slap to the upper arm in return.

He jutted his lower lip out, turning his head to send puppy eyes at his boyfriend. “Why did you hit me?” he whined, pout sliding into a smug smile before Luhan even had a chance to apologize. “Are you trying to get me hard too?”

Luhan’s jaw dropped, choking out a desolate gasp, and Sehun pushed back just a little bit more between his legs as he smiled sweetly and kissed Luhan lightly on the cheek. “Love you.”

“You are the fucking _worst_ ,” Luhan hissed into his ear, squeezing his elbow. “If I didn’t live so fucking far from here we’d be leaving right now.”

“Calm down.” Sehun pulled Luhan’s arms around his waist and snuggled back, the very picture of innocence. “Maybe I’ll blow you in the bathroom later.”

Luhan spluttered indignantly, and Sehun hummed breezily, turning his attention back to the drunken shenanigans happening around him. Chanyeol pulled Tao off Yixing, dragging him and Baekhyun to the side where he and Kris were performing something that Sehun _supposed_ could be called dancing. He laughed to himself, taking Luhan’s wrists and patting his stomach with Luhan’s hands in time to the beat. Luhan nuzzled into the back of his neck, muttering something about how good his hair smelled. Minseok returned, sitting down next to Jongin and tucking his feet beneath himself quietly.

Sehun looked up and smiled when Kyungsoo slid over to sit beside Luhan, gazing at them with solemn eyes.

“Is… is Yixing okay?” Kyungsoo whispered the question under his breath. Sehun looked over, noticing for the first time how Yixing was crying, teeth bared and eyes screwed shut while Jongdae, brows knotted in concern, gently stroked his hair and face as he murmured soft words of comfort to him.

“Oh.” Luhan sighed, rubbing Sehun’s belly. “That.”

“What’s wrong?” Sehun asked. “Do you know?”

“Yeah.” Sehun could feel Luhan’s hard-on disappear as he turned to murmur back at Kyungsoo. “Don’t worry about it, they need to take care of that themselves. Nothing all that bad happened, it’s just…” he squeezed Sehun’s hand. “Chen’s going to army straight after school finishes, and Yixing’s pretty cut up about it.”

“Oh.” Sehun’s frown softened. “Sometimes I almost forget you guys are graduating in a couple of months. That must be tough for them.”

“I mean they’ve been basically inseparable for four years,” Luhan pointed out. “And now they have to be apart for two? It’s not going to be easy.” He paused for a second. “And Yixing isn’t going to university until Chen gets back. He tried to talk him out of it, but Yixing can be really stubborn when he wants to be. They’re both pretty worried about the future.”

“He’s not going to uni?” Sehun asked in surprise. “What’s he going to do for two years?”

“Who knows? Work? Save money? Travel? Make music? He’s not sure yet.”

“What about his parents?”

Luhan hesitated, gazing flatly at Sehun, then at Kyungsoo, who stayed silent but was obviously intrigued. Luhan swallowed, dropping his voice even further. “Yixing doesn’t have his own parents,” he admitted. “Just Chen’s. That’s most of the reason he moved in here, actually. He’s keeping them company while their son’s away.”

“What happened to Yixing’s parents?”

Luhan shook his head, clearing his throat. “No, that’s not my place to say,” he said decisively. “You can ask him another day if you really want to know. It’s fine, though. Chen’s parents really do adore him. I hope you meet them one day, they’re really great. They…” Luhan’s voice cracked. “They’re everything a gay kid could imagine love feels like.”

Kyungsoo slipped away quietly, sparing Luhan an audience to his emotions. Sehun twisted his body around, taking Luhan’s face into his hands and pressing soft kisses to his reddening nose. “It’s okay,” he whispered, kissing his cheeks and forehead and eyelids. “It’s okay, don’t cry. I’m here, and I love you very much.”

Luhan opened his eyes, drawing in a deep breath and holding it in his lungs until the sobs stopped threatening to spill over his lips.

“You do, don’t you?” he mused when he found his voice again.

“Yeah.” Sehun smiled. “I really do.”

 

*

 

Sehun closed the lid of his plastic container, trapping his disposable cutlery inside, and looked around at his circle of friends. There was a lull in the conversation and everyone was quiet, paying attention to their food. Maybe it was a result of his inebriation, but Sehun was suddenly overcome with emotion, surrounded by the people most important to him. A lot had happened in the past few hours, many of them laying all their cards on the table, stress levels surging and emotions running high. But right now, he felt calm, and by the looks of it, so did everyone else. The music was soothing; greasy, starchy noodles filling up holes in the soul. Yixing had stopped crying, Baekhyun had calmed down, occasionally pushing prawns into Chanyeol’s mouth, and Kyungsoo had even smiled at Jongin across the table as he asked him to pass a tissue.

Sehun coughed, and several faces turned to him curiously. “Um,” he stuttered, not expecting the acknowledgment. “I, uh.”

Now he had everyone’s attention. He looked around the circle once more. “This has been the best year of my life,” he blurted out.

“Aww,” chuckled Yixing. Minseok’s smile was radiant.

“I can’t even imagine what my life would be like if I hadn’t met you all,” Sehun twisted the wrapper from his chopsticks, curling it around his finger. “I can’t even believe…” he swallowed, subconsciously pushing out his lower lip in a small pout. “I love you guys.”

“Wow, that’s so gay,” Baekhyun commented, but the expression on his face was touched.

“Your face is gay,” Sehun slurred, hiding his flushed cheeks in his hands.

“My everything is gay,” Baekhyun snorted. “Doesn’t make you less cheesy.”

Chanyeol chuckled, resting his chin on top of Baekhyun’s head. “Is our baby Sehunnie having a moment?”

Sehun smiled tearfully, ducking his head again when Kris reached over the table to ruffle his hair. “Baby Sehunnie,” he echoed, looking satisfied as he settled back on his heels.

“You’re so fucking cute, Sehun,” Jongdae shook his head, “I’m glad you met us too.”

“You are the worst,” Tao deadpanned, helping himself to cheese corn, “But I will look past it just because I love you so much.” Jongin laughed at his words, grinning tipsily at Sehun as he leaned against the couch. Kyungsoo smiled at him, fingers crawling down his wrist to hold his hand while Luhan kissed his other arm.

“I just,” Sehun hid in Luhan’s shoulder and almost rolled right off, “You guys are the best.”

“Oh wow, he’s drunk as fuck,” Jongin laughed affectionately while Luhan and Kyungsoo caught him and gathered him up to almost-upright.

“I’m not that drunk,” Sehun protested, trying to lean on Luhan again, this time with his face the right way up. “I really love you guys.”

“It’s okay,” Yixing giggled from somewhere to his right. “Don’t worry, Sehun. We know.”

“Good.” Sehun smiled to himself, grounding himself to Luhan’s arms around his waist, safe in the knowledge that they all loved him too, in their own different ways. “That’s good.”

 

 

 

-FIN-

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT'S FINISHED~~~~~
> 
> Fuck dudes i'm so emo about posting this... It's been such a great journey...   
> I've been flip-flopping between loving and hating this fic through the whole time I've been writing it, posting it, rereading, fixing, changing, adding, right up until the last moment. I can't believe that the past four years have finally produced something I managed to complete, and actually managed to be pretty proud of! Honestly, when I was finishing up the last chapter two months ago, I would've been okay with nobody ever reading it, as long as I could tell myself I'd done it. But you've all been so fucking lovely and supportive and kind in the comments — I want to thank everyone who took the time to read, give kudos, subscribe, and especially comment, so, so, so, so much. I'm honestly overwhelmed with reception this story has gotten, you're all way too good to me, and I am so unbelievably happy that you guys have enjoyed it! 
> 
> I will try not to take another four years to write a sequel! Honestly I've been thinking about that for months now and I have so many ideas that I have to figure out how to format... So much stuff I want to write for these boys... It's probably going to be a bit darker and more serious than this fic, but there will definitely still be the happy moments because at the crux of the matter, they're all just... so dumb... and they love so hard. 
> 
> In the meantime you can follow me on tumblr @yehetnoodleboy if you wanna see me cry over irl exo daily and @artbythenoodleboy if you want to follow the KrisHo webcomic I do! 
> 
> Anyway I hope you're all satisfied with this ending.   
> Thank you so much <3

**Author's Note:**

> I STARTED THIS FIC IN 2013  
> FOUR YEARS LATER IT IS FINALLY FINISHED
> 
> I'm so excited to be posting this oh my god you have no idea  
> Please leave a comment/kudos if you enjoy it too! <3


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